


opening the floodgates

by hellfire123456



Series: otf universe [1]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Bullying, Childhood Friends, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Harry Potter AU, Hate Speech, Hufflepuff!Sakusa, M/M, Mutual Pining, Non-Graphic Violence, POV Sakusa Kiyoomi, Rivals to Lovers, and some other wizardy stuff, but in the hp!world, but they don’t know its mutual!!, durmstrang!atsumu, mature for violence and language, omi has two braincells, part 1 intro, sakusa character study?, subtle ass pining bc author doesn’t know how to make it obvious, veryyyy slow burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-12
Updated: 2021-01-31
Packaged: 2021-03-16 11:20:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 21,985
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28705800
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hellfire123456/pseuds/hellfire123456
Summary: Miya-san turned to Kiyoomi, again with that big grin on his face, and offered a hand. “Nice ta meet ya, Sakusa!”Kiyoomi reluctantly grasped his glove-clad hand back, muttering, “Nice to meet you too, Miya-san.”“No need fer the honorifics!” Miya-san—no, Miya—batted a hand in front of his face. “We’re tha same age! Actually, I’d prefer it if ya called me Atsumu. I have a twin, so it’s just better that way! Hey, can ya show me yer room? I wanna see what Quidditch merch ya have!”-----Or a story about acceptance and defying expectations set in the universe of Harry Potter, in which Sakusa has a fox friend and Atsumu has a terrible personality
Relationships: Miya Atsumu/Sakusa Kiyoomi
Series: otf universe [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2190768
Comments: 74
Kudos: 254





	1. chance meetings

**Author's Note:**

> hi guys! this is my first fic on ao3 and it was definitely a brainworm that i hope all of you enjoy! i've planned 2 parts so far: one as a little intro, and the other as the long, major part of the plot (should be 2-3x longer). in the first part both omi and atsumu are around 13 years old, and in the second part they'll be around 16-17 years old. 
> 
> thank you to my amazing beta [Jordan](https://twitter.com/u_suspend) for enduring with me throughout this whole thing and malik and kobra for listening to my rambling!
> 
> in case you haven't read or watched harry potter or just need some refreshers:
> 
> muggle: a non-magic wielding person  
> muggle-born: someone who was born from two muggle parents  
> half-blood: someone with one wizarding parent and one muggle parent  
> pure-blood: someone with two wizarding parents  
> mudblood: a slur used against muggle-borns  
> hogwarts/durmstrang: the wizarding schools mentioned  
> hufflepuff: a house in hogwarts that values loyalty, effort, and hard, honest work; house colors are yellow and black  
> slytherin: a house full of cunning, sly and clever students who have a history of valuing pure-blooded wizards; house colors are green and silver  
> quidditch: a popular sport in the wizarding world involving balls of different sizes, brooms, and bats in which the objective is to either catch the smallest, fastest ball (known as the Snitch) or hit the other balls through the hoops

_ You’re unnatural! _

_ Gross, your parents are Muggles? _ _  
  
_

_ Mudblood! _

It happened again. Kiyoomi shouldn’t have expected anything otherwise. Every year at Hogwarts was the same, even if it was only his third. All because he was born to parents who couldn’t use magic. Who were  _ Muggles _ . The bullying, the harsh words. He could usually take it, but this wave had come with a hefty bucket of dragon blood (really, how clever of them to dump animal blood on someone they deemed had dirty blood) splashed onto him by a handful of Slytherin students. The embarrassment had been doubled when the transfer students from Durmstrang had walked past just as Kiyoomi had been subjected to the ordeal. He had run out right after the incident, but not fast enough to escape the eye of a dark-haired boy in the Durmstrang group. The fact that the stranger’s gaze was full of pity did nothing to ease his terrible mood. Kiyoomi hated pity.

Pity was what his teachers’ eyes always had when they saw him with scratches or stained robes in the hallway. Pity is what Motoya had looked at him with when he explained to him what a Mudblood was in their first year. Kiyoomi didn’t need pity if nobody was going to do anything about it; that’s why he learned that he should look away and ignore everything when he was subjected to incidents like this if he wanted to maintain some semblance of calm and dignity. He didn’t need people to feel sorry for him. He felt sorry enough for himself.

Looking out at the lake, Kiyoomi wondered what his life would be like if he were a pureblood, or even just a halfblood, like Motoya. Maybe he could walk into a dorm without hearing the whispers of people fighting over who  _ wouldn’t _ have to be his roommate. Maybe he could have a Potions partner that wouldn’t put Bulbadox Juice in his drink instead of the potion they were assigned.

Whatever. Wallowing in self-pity wasn’t his style anyways, he thought as he rested his head on the tops of his knees. Regardless of what people threw at him, Kiyoomi had chosen to stay at Hogwarts for the past three years because he wanted to be a fantastic wizard when he grew up. He only had to go through four more years in a broken system to achieve his goals. Hogwarts was just the best place to do that. His grandmother used to tell him that effort bred greatness, and he’d stuck by that. If the journey was lonely, he’d just have to endure it. Kiyoomi had never needed friends or memories anyways.

Suddenly a bush rustled, startling Kiyoomi out of his stormy thoughts. He glanced over to the bush in question, but nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary. It was probably just some pixies playing around again now that he thought about it. Putting it out of his mind, Kiyoomi grabbed his drenched bag and stood up, only to be thrown back down on his butt by a yelping red blur. Recovering from his dizziness, Kiyoomi blinked his eyes open to see mischievous golden eyes and a lolling tongue right in front of his face. Well, in front of his face before the fox dipped down and licked a stripe right across his cheek.

“Hey!” Kiyoomi smiled. “That tickles.”

He sat up and wrapped his arms around his legs, placing his head on top of his folded arms in order to get a better look at the animal. It was a bright, fiery red, with a large wagging tail tipped with white, accompanied by thick, smooth fur. It looked like it wasn’t full-grown yet, but it still carried the aura of a fierce being. The fox had a tuft of black fur on the top of its head, and strangely enough, had what looked like a smirk on its face. It pattered forward to Kiyoomi and offered its paw, on which Kiyoomi saw what looked like a burn or birthmark in the shape of a sun near what would’ve been its index finger if it were a human. When Kiyoomi gently grasped its paw and shook it in an imitation of a handshake, it yelped and jumped onto him once more, nuzzling into his neck before settling into his lap contentedly.

“I don’t think you want to be that close to me right now, Fox-kun,” Kiyoomi muttered while trying to move the fox to a more comfortable, dry patch of grass rather than his soaked, disgustingly bloody robes. However, the fox didn’t budge, just nestled deeper into the space between his legs. Kiyoomi chuckled. He’d always had a liking for animals, and this one seemed to like him right back. “You really like me, huh?”

The fox chirped, if one could believe a fox could do that, and wagged its tail delightedly. Kiyoomi sighed, continuing, “It seems like you’re the only one who does.”

The fox sat up at the statement, whining and tilting its head to the side. Almost as if it were confused. If Kiyoomi weren’t so deep in his head he would’ve categorized this behavior as weird, but he wasn’t paying enough attention to care at the moment. He continued stroking the fox’s silky fur while staring into the distance. “I can’t believe I’m actually talking to a fox right now, but I guess you’ll be a good listener. Fox-kun, it’s been another bad day for me.”

Kiyoomi spent a good part of the afternoon rambling about everything and nothing to the little fox, who seemed happy enough just to stay in Kiyoomi’s lap, occasionally shifting or yipping as Kiyoomi threaded his fingers through the fox’s russet coat. He told his new little friend about the bullying he had to go through, how today was just another day of it, how he was sick of it all but knew that he needed to just suck it up in order to get where he wanted to be. When he was done, the sun had nearly set and the fox was dozing off in his arms.

“Fox-kun,” Kiyoomi whispered as he nudged it. “I’ve got to get back to the castle now. Maybe I can see you tomorrow?”

The fox slowly got back on all fours. Its eyes gleamed in understanding, and it licked Kiyoomi’s cheek once more before bounding back in the direction it came. As he walked back to the Hogwarts main castle, Kiyoomi’s shoulders felt a little lighter, and his robe just a little less damp.

\------------------------------

The next day, Kiyoomi was rushed from place to place without a single break. His nerves were seriously about to snap. Between helping clean the Hufflepuff dorms and welcoming their section of the Durmstrang students, Kiyoomi felt like he was about to burst at the seams. The only upside to the busywork is that his flitting from place to place made him too fast to catch, so his bullies wouldn’t be able to throw something on him or dish out scathing remarks.

At least, not for today.

He finished casting his last  _ Aguamenti _ spell to wash the windows before a prefect stuck his head in and called Kiyoomi to join the other Hufflepuff “tour guides” in the common room. The title “tour guide” was given to Hufflepuff students who were assigned a Durmstrang student to show around and assist regarding the “Hogwarts experience” (Headmaster’s words, not his). The students were just at Hogwarts from overseas for three months  — a trial period, to say. If they liked it enough, they would register for the exchange program that would give them a chance to study at Hogwarts, while some Hogwarts students would study in Durmstrang. He rushed into the common room in the nick of time, sure that his robes were askew and his hair a mess.

The Hufflepuff prefect, Tachibana Benjiro, gave the room a quick survey before clearing his throat to signal that everyone necessary was present.

“Hello, everyone!” Tachibana starts. “Us students welcome you to Hogwarts. We hope you’ve settled in nicely and have enjoyed the resources we’ve provided thus far! Now, we’ll get to the part you’ve obviously all been waiting for: assigning your tour guides! We’ll place you all with Hogwarts students in similar age groups and with similar interests, using the surveys you’ve sent through your owls prior. Now, let’s get started!”

Kiyoomi avoided looking at the Durmstrang group, only peeking once to confirm what he already knew: the entirety of the group in front of him had seen the dragon’s blood catastrophe yesterday. He didn’t want to look up, didn’t want to see the disappointment in his tourist’s eyes when they realized that they had been paired with a loser like him. If only Motoya were here — maybe he could’ve taken Kiyoomi’s place, he had always been more of a social butterfly. However, Motoya was currently at Durmstrang as part of the exchange program, in the same position as the Durmstrang group currently at Hogwarts.

As per usual, Kiyoomi’s thoughts overtook his brain so easily that he didn’t even notice that he had gotten paired with someone until Tachibana tapped him on the shoulder. Shocked out of his stupor, he looked up right into a wide grin and sparkling brown eyes.

“Sakusa-kun,” Tachibana pointed at the young boy in front of him. “This is Miya Atsumu. He’s also a third year from Durmstrang, and he’s going to be your tourist!”

Tachibana then turned to the boy, now called Miya-san in his head, and told him, “Miya-kun, this is Sakusa Kiyoomi. He’s a third year, and he enjoys Quidditch and Potions just like you! I hope you get along well!”

Miya-san turned to Kiyoomi, again with that big grin on his face, and offered a hand. “Nice ta meet ya, Sakusa!”

Kiyoomi reluctantly grasped his glove-clad hand back, muttering, “Nice to meet you too, Miya-san.”

“No need fer the honorifics!” Miya-san — no, Miya — batted a hand in front of his face. “We’re tha same age! Actually, I’d prefer it if ya called me Atsumu. I have a twin, so it’s just better that way! Hey, can ya show me yer room? I wanna see what Quidditch merch ya have!”

Kiyoomi twiddled his fingers, looking up at Atsumu. That damn smile was still there, stretching from ear to ear. He recognized Atsumu as the boy who caught his eye yesterday when he was escaping from his tormentors. He had to have known where Kiyoomi fell on the popularity scale at Hogwarts, yet he didn’t seem bothered by it at all. He just looked...excited. Kiyoomi couldn’t really grasp the concept of someone being excited at the chance to spend time with him, but he’d indulge in the fantasy for now. It was only a short amount of time before even Atsumu was driven away by the mess that is Sakusa Kiyoomi. Everybody left eventually.

“Yeah...sure,” Kiyoomi mumbled. “My room is just this way, if you’d follow me.”   
  


“Sure, Sakusa! Lead the way!”

\------------------------------

It definitely said something about Kiyoomi’s luck that he got stuck with one of the biggest chatterboxes and frankly, annoyances, as his tourist. First, Atsumu had criticized his choice in Quidditch teams, saying, “Ireland ‘s way better than ol’ Albania! What’re ya on, Omi-kun?” The next day, he claimed to have learned a cool new spell and wanted to show it to Kiyoomi, which resulted in drenched robes and a sheepish “Sorry, Omi-Omi! I got another dryin’ spell to show ya though!”

Oh, yeah. Let’s not forget the infamous new nickname (and its variations) he had now. Atsumu had forgone the customary regard-me-by-my-family-name rule in order to call him by a shortened, more annoying version of his given name shortly after being introduced to him. No matter how many glares or sneers Kiyoomi had thrown his way throughout the week they’d known each other, the amount of times Atsumu used the nickname had just grown (along with Kiyoomi’s impatience).

The only respite he had was his daily conversations with his fox friend, who he had taken to calling Sunny due to the mark on its paw. Every day, at the same time and place, Kiyoomi would escape his responsibilities and coddling upperclassmen (he knew they just wanted to make him feel included, he still didn’t) to go to his spot at the lake and detail his daily troubles to Sunny, while the fox in question lazed comfortably either by his side or in his lap. Funnily enough, his time with Sunny was the only time in which Atsumu didn’t try to latch onto his side like a leech. Speaking of which, his current rant to the fox was about Atsumu’s latest annoying act.

“See, Sunny, this guy is so full of himself,” Kiyoomi rambled. “All these girls were fawning over him today while he was walking with me to Potions class and it was so infuriating! He didn’t even let me go ahead, he just kept me there while the girls simpered over him. What was he trying to do? Flaunt his popularity? Make me jealous?”

At that, Sunny lifted his head and whined a little. Kiyoomi flattened his palm on Sunny’s head and continued speaking. “Yeah, that was probably it. He just wanted to show me that girls actually like him.”

Sunny snarled at this, and Kiyoomi took it as a sound made in his defense. He laughed, continuing, “C’mon Sunny, it’s not like it affects me at all. I’m gay, anyways, not that he would know that.”

Kiyoomi continued telling the little fox about his thoughts and deeds until the bottom of the sun kissed the surface of the lake, signaling the end of their time together. He gently lifted Sunny and placed him back on the grass, then brushed the dust off his robes and straightened them. As customary at the end of their meetings, Kiyoomi stroked the fox’s head three times, making him purr; “Until next time, Sunny. Now pray for me because I have to eat dinner with Atsumu.”

\------------------------------

Funnily enough, Atsumu’s near-constant presence next to Kiyoomi throughout the three months he was designated to stay at Hogwarts seemed to deter any bullies that would’ve thought to harm him. It could’ve been due to his status, a pureblood, descended from one of the most powerful wizarding families in the world — the Miyas. Yes, Kiyoomi found this out through hours of researching in the Hogwarts library. No, he was not being creepy, he was just doing his due diligence. The Miyas were known to make up the top one percent of the wizarding world with internationally ranked Quidditch players, famous Aurors, and even just extremely prosperous wizards. It had Kiyoomi questioning why Atsumu still hung around him. Perhaps Atsumu didn’t know Kiyoomi’s family history, and saw the Dragon Blood incident as an isolated one.

Either way, Atsumu’s time at Hogwarts was coming to an end in just a day, and he hadn’t told Kiyoomi whether or not he was going to come back yet. Kiyoomi couldn’t depend on him forever, and he wouldn’t. It didn’t matter that  _ maybe _ Kiyoomi was getting used to Atsumu, that  _ maybe _ he was beginning to tolerate him. He didn’t need a pureblood to get where he wanted to be. He didn’t need anyone.

However, as all good things tend to do, this little period of peace came to an end the day before Atsumu was supposed to leave. 

Atsumu had left Kiyoomi to go fill out some last-minute forms relating to his departure. With a wink and a “Don’t miss me too much, Omi!” Atsumu had disappeared from his side for the first time in what felt like ages. Kiyoomi, now on his own, made his way to the library for some quiet study time (which he had been lacking due to Atsumu’s constant presence) instead of the dorms, which he had previously told Atsumu he would be heading to. He turned a corner and bumped into what felt like a wall, falling to the ground. He looked up and saw a hulking sixth year wearing green-lined robes. A smile dripping in mirth.

“You little mudblood,” the sixth year started. “Thought you could escape us that easily?”

  
  
Kiyoomi, riddled with fear, tried standing up and grabbing his wand, only to be knocked back onto his butt when he collided with a different sixth year. His wand was stolen from his grasp. He tried looking for an escape route, but was surrounded by at least four other people.

“Hey!” the one who first spoke, presumably the leader, grabbed Kiyoomi’s chin and yanked it in his direction. “Listen to me when I’m talking. Mudbloods don’t get to ignore real wizards.”

“I  _ am  _ a real wizard!” Kiyoomi spat out. 

Wrong decision. A kick to the face had tears leaking from Kiyoomi’s eyes and blood dribbling from his nose.

“No, you’re not.” The group laughed at the sight of Kiyoomi sprawled on the floor, shiny golden robes now dulled with his own splattered blood. “All you have is luck and dirty blood. In fact, that’s why we’re not even gonna waste our magic on you!”

A kick to the ribs. Another in the same area, but on the opposite side. Kiyoomi’s head got yanked up once more and he registered the group’s leader’s face leering at him.

“You’ll never be a real wizard.”

A punch to the nose had him seeing stars. A hit to his gut had him seeing black.

\------------------------------

Kiyoomi opened his eyes slowly to the blinding white lights of the infirmary wing. He had a raging headache, and the feeling of dried blood had him shuddering in discomfort. Well, he couldn’t really move too much since everywhere on his body hurt. Once he became a little more conscious he tried looking around, only to flop back onto his pillow due to the immense pain. He groaned, shifing his eyes when he heard shuffling to his left. 

The sight that greeted him was, to say the least, surprising. Miya Atsumu was hunched over in a chair next to the hospital bed he was in, eyes closed and holding his hand — the hand he just realized that he couldn’t feel. He made an alarmed sound at the discovery, causing Atsumu to look up, eyes widening. They glistened with tears.

“Kiyoomi!” The fact that Atsumu had used his full name did not go unnoticed, but Kiyoomi’s hazy mind didn’t recognize the weight of it. “Kiyoomi, how are ya? I brought ya here, but the nurse is out righ’ now ‘n I didn’t wanna try anythin’ just in case it hurt ya even more. Why didn’t ya go to the dorms like ya told me? Kiyoomi, c’mon say somethin’. Anythin’ — ”

“Atsumu.” Kiyoomi mumbled. It sounded garbled to his ears, but Atsumu leaned forward, visibly hanging on to every muddled word that came out of his mouth. “What happened?”   
  


“What….happened?” Atsumu’s face darkened. “Some assholes tried ta kill ya, that’s what happened!”

Kiyoomi wasn’t surprised. Memories of the brutal beating came flooding back to him, along with unwanted reminders of how helpless and  _ pitiful _ he must’ve seemed. How  _ weak _ .

“Why weren’t ya more responsible?” Atsumu gripped his hair with the hand that wasn’t occupied with holding Kiyoomi’s. “God, do ya even know how I felt, seein’ ya bleedin’ out on the ground while those….those  _ animals _ tortured ya and  _ laughed _ ? How I felt when I used every damn spell in my arsenal ta save ya from those guys? Kiyoomi — ”

“Don’t lecture me.” Kiyoomi shifted his eyes to meet Atsumu’s face. When he looked into Atsumu’s eyes, he saw what he had been dreading. Pity. The sight of the thing he hated most on his (what he had been begrudgingly calling Atsumu in his head) only friend’s face just fueled the anger singing in his veins. “Regardless of what you might think, Miya — ”

Atsumu flinched.

“I’m not a damsel in distress.” Kiyoomi turned his gaze away. “I’m a wizard. A real one. I don’t need you to feel sorry for me, and I  _ especially _ don’t need someone to save me. Just leave me alone.”   
  


“Omi — ”

“ _ Don’t _ call me that. Just go. I can hear the nurse coming anyway.  _ I don’t need you here _ .”

He could feel Atsumu freeze. Before he knew it, Atsumu’s hand slipped from his grip and he stood, presumably to leave. Kiyoomi stubbornly kept his gaze steady in the opposite direction. The only signals that Atsumu had departed were a light breeze accompanied by his signature peppermint scent, a flash of yellow from Atsumu’s borrowed Hufflepuff robes, and a whispered farewell.

_ I’m sorry _ . 

When Kiyoomi moved his eyes back to his left side, he saw nothing but an empty chair and his limp hand, no longer blessed with the warmth of another. He stared into space for what seemed like hours. A light tapping on his shoulder prompted him to lift his gaze. In his trance, he hadn’t heard any footsteps.  _ Did Atsumu come back? _

“Hi, sweetie,” Nurse Isao smiled. It wasn’t as bright as Atsumu’s. “I’m going to fix you right up now, okay? There were no magic-inflicted injuries, and it seems like you only have a few broken ribs. A quick  _ Brackium Emendo _ should fix you right up, and an overnight stay should get rid of those nasty bruises.”

Kiyoomi just nodded and closed his eyes, preparing himself for the pain that accompanied a broken-bone healing spell. After the nurse finished and left, he fell into a restless sleep.

The next day, Kiyoomi traversed the castle only to find Atsumu gone.  _ Most likely back at Durmstrang already _ , he thought to himself. Kiyoomi had been excused from that day’s classes due to his injuries, so he chose to spend his time at his little cove near the lake. After he received the letter telling him Motoya would stay at Durmstrang, all he wanted to do was relax — preferably away from the chaos and bad memories the Hogwarts castle provided recently — and to talk Sunny about his troubles. Kiyoomi had nearly panicked when he realized that Sunny must’ve been so lost the other day after Kiyoomi missed their daily meeting. He planned to make it up to his feisty friend by bringing the fox his favorite little treats wrapped in delicate, yellow paper.

But the time passed, and again the sun met the lake in a fleeting embrace. Sunny didn’t show. It was probably Kiyoomi’s fault for not coming the day before.

He threw his head in his hands. Cold without the grasp of another. Cold without a bundle of silken fur underneath them. He had known that this would happen, that the fantasy he had indulged in would end someday. But the truth still hurt just as much.

Everybody leaves eventually.


	2. chance reunions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “KIYOOMI!” Kiyoomi grunted as something heavy landed on his back and latched around his neck. “Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten your favorite cousin, now! Oh, that’s a pretty shade of blue!”
> 
> Oh yeah, he’d forgotten that his cousin was in his tour group since he’d been too occupied with thoughts of someone else. A mistake, since his cousin was just as chaotic as the Whomping Willow itself - one minute back and he had already caused the activation of Kiyoomi’s Metamorphmagus abilities. “Motoya, I literally just got my hair to stay black. Get off of me so I can bring the rest of the group to somewhere quieter! And change my hair!” He blindly slapped his hand around and smirked when one hit landed on Motoya’s head, causing him to yelp and let go.
> 
> “Grumpy as always, eh, Omi-kun?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi guys, back with another chapter! this part is a little longer, and I've decided to make it 3 chapters instead of 2 since there is some stuff that I wanted to go in more detail about. remember that this chapter takes place 3 years in the future, so the characters are a bit more grown! please enjoy!
> 
> just in case you haven't watched Harry Potter or have forgotten some of the terms:
> 
> Triwizard Tournament: a tournament that takes place every century entailing multiple challenges and invites wizards from different schools to participate in  
> Goblet of Fire: the cup that potential challengers place their name in and the thing that chooses the competitors for the Triwizard Tournament  
> Animagus: a wizard that can transform into an animal that best displays their inner self  
> Metamorphmagus: a wizard that can change any part of their body in order to look a certain way

It was another afternoon at Hogwarts, the day drawing to a close. The leaves on the trees surrounding the lake rustled, the sound of pixies flitting in and out of the branches complementing the near musical sounds. The lake itself glistened in sparkling shades of orange, courtesy of the setting sun, making it seem as if a thousand fiery crystals had been scattered across its surface. Sakusa Kiyoomi sat alone on the banks of said lake, curly hair gently blown by the breeze, elegant hands folded in his lap, staring into the distance.

It has been three whole years since the day Kiyoomi gained, and eventually lost, his first true friend.

There was a kind of bittersweet nostalgia in revisiting the spot where they first met, he supposed. Of course, Kiyoomi meant him and Sunny. If he put his hand in the direction of the setting sun, he could pretend that the warmth of the little fox’s fur was under his hand again. Truthfully, if not for Sunny, Kiyoomi’s third year self might not have been able to persevere through his worst challenges. Even having the smallest respite from the daily abuse and loneliness he went through made the biggest difference.

Thinking back, although Kiyoomi had always been fairly independent, he still wished that he had had someone with him that could share in the excitement of his new accomplishments. But thinking like that was dangerous, because his mind would always wander to thoughts of a bright smile and the smell of spicy peppermint.

It was ironic, really, that someone as weak as him could’ve made it to where he was now alone. After the run-in he had had with the Slytherin sixth-years three years ago, Kiyoomi vowed to improve himself, to make himself strong enough so that no one would pity him again. 

Kiyoomi had changed a lot in the past three years thanks to his efforts, both physically and mentally. Motoya hadn’t been there to help him out physically, since he was still participating in the Durmstrang exchange program, but the letters he had exchanged with his cousin throughout the months had given him the mental support he needed to survive in the dangerous jungle that was Hogwarts - he was actually the one that gave Kiyoomi the idea of trying out some extracurriculars. So, Kiyoomi had spent the summer before fourth year at his childhood home throwing spell after spell at an old oak tree in his backyard, and riding around on a broom while trying to beat a Bludger into a magical target. The relative quiet and seclusiveness of the house’s location was much appreciated by both Kiyoomi and his parents, since there was no way they could’ve explained his late night  _ Expelliarmus! _ ’s and loud Bludger hits to neighbors.

When Kiyoomi came back to Hogwarts for his fourth year, he’d been able to join both the Duelling Club and Hufflepuff’s Quidditch team as a Beater. The process was relatively easy; Hufflepuff had never put much weight on blood status, and the leaders of the Duelling Club had been too impressed by his performance to complain that a Muggle-born was joining. The bullying still persisted, but only for a little while - once Kiyoomi masterfully used a  _ Stupefy _ to render four of his aggressors powerless, people were too scared of his wizardry to bother him again. 

He had also consulted with various teachers, mostly Headmaster Nekomata, about how he could hone his powers (maybe even learn skills meant for the upperclassmen). He’d already been grateful to them for their aid, but the thing he appreciated most was how all of his mentors never had an ounce of pity in their eyes — rather, just pure respect. Kiyoomi especially noticed it when he discovered his best ability with Headmaster Nekomata’s help around the end of his fourth year.

_ “Kiyoomi-kun,” Nekomata began. “Did you know that some wizards have special, more powerful abilities? That some wizards are granted special gifts?” _

_ “Sensei, I don’t understand,” Kiyoomi rubbed his chin, pondering on what Nekomata just said. “Isn’t magic a gift in and of itself?” _

_ Nekomata gave a full-belly laugh, rearing back in his chair.  _

_ “Ah, Kiyoomi-kun, I wish we had more wizards that thought like you.” Nekomata stood up and grabbed what looked like a vial of shimmery purple liquid from his cabinet. As he lifted it up to the light and inspected it, turning it this way and that, he continued, “We should all appreciate magic more. But no, that isn’t what I’m talking about. Through genetics, many wizards possess the power to change themselves in some ways, such as animaguses, who can turn themselves into an animal that represents their inner self best. I myself, am a cat animagus.” _

_ Kiyoomi vaguely remembered studying animaguses in Magical History class earlier that year, but he didn’t recall any other forms of genetically inherited special magical abilities. He communicated this to Nekomata, who just gave Kiyoomi a considering look, and then handed the liquid vial to Kiyoomi. _

_ “You know, we can determine whether or not a pure-blooded, or even half-blooded, wizard has or doesn’t have a certain ability by looking at their bloodline,” Headmaster Nekomata popped open the vial’s cork with a wave of his wand. “But Muggle-borns are different, since your bloodline and family history isn’t recorded in our records.” _

_ “Nekomata-sensei, you think I have a special ability?” Kiyoomi didn’t want to get his hopes up, but why else would the Headmaster be discussing this with him right now? _

_ “I do,” Nekomata said definitively. Kiyoomi wriggled a bit in anticipation. “You’ve displayed various qualities over the past few months we’ve been training together that lead me to believe you’re a bit different compared to other wizards. And I’m not talking about your blood status. But we won’t know for sure unless you ingest this potion, so.” _

_ Headmaster Nekomata gestured to the open vial, in which the purple liquid was now sparking and bubbling, as if heated. It had probably been activated by Nekomata while he was answering Kiyoomi’s question. _

Here goes _ , Kiyoomi thought. And then he downed the potion in one shot. _

_ After Kiyoomi swallowed, he didn’t feel much of anything. He looked at Nekomata with a question in his eyes. The old man just stared back at him with a smirk.  _

_ “Nekomata-sensei, I don’t think this is working -”  _

_ Everything went black. _

_ When Kiyoomi woke up, he did so fitfully, choking on air and going through a coughing fit that lasted until he felt a firm hand on his back, slapping him out of it. He twisted his torso in order to look up into smiling, crinkled eyes, and nearly blacked out again when he heard Headmaster Nekomata say: _

_ “Congratulations, Kiyoomi-kun, I was correct. You are a Metamorphmagus.” _

Actually, Kiyoomi was pretty sure he did pass out after - the memory was still a bit hazy. Admittedly, it could’ve been from the adrenaline rush after finding out that he had an ability that (after training) would allow him to change his appearance, or aspects of it, in order to look like anything he wanted to - but it could’ve been more the realization that Kiyoomi finally had  _ power _ , he had something to  _ fight _ with. He wasn’t just the poor little Muggleborn that he was in his first few years at Hogwarts, the poor kid that nearly cried after his first real friend left him. And he could say with a high degree of certainty that he had honed his weapon well, since he could now alter his appearance nearly any way he wanted to. 

In the past three years, Kiyoomi had placed Hogwarts in the palm of his hand and molded it into a suitable home for him, a place where his dreams could finally be realized. He was now the Hufflepuff Quidditch captain, a prefect, a Duelling champion, and a skilled Metamorphmagus. He had even made good friends with some of the other wizards, like little but clever Yachi Hitoka from Ravenclaw, sly Oikawa Tooru from Slytherin (also a Muggle-born, shocker!), and even eccentric Tendou Satori, also from Slytherin, who talked to him about the latest Herbology findings in between classes. Kiyoomi couldn’t ask for more, really.

Except one thing. An extremely annoying….endearing….possibly even attractive thing - something that Kiyoomi had sent far away and would most likely never see again: Miya Atsumu.

Kiyoomi hadn’t heard hide nor hair from or about Atsumu ever since their fight three years ago. But really, who could blame the other boy? Kiyoomi had known, even as a kid, that his personality wasn’t suited for long-term friendships, relationships or the like - eventually, everybody would leave him. It didn’t stop Kiyoomi from having his first crush on Atsumu, even though it took forever for him to admit it. It didn’t stop him from missing the radiant boy, the boy who reminded him of the sun itself. Sometimes, when Kiyoomi thought about Atsumu, when Kiyoomi  _ missed _ Atsumu, his thoughts would divert him to the fact that reminiscing was weak, that making a mistake he could barely own up to was  _ so weak _ . So Kiyoomi, throughout the years, had slowly tried to purge Atsumu from his system (tried being the keyword), focusing instead on improving himself. 

So that’s who Kiyoomi was now - a young, successful wizard on the road to glory, rare Muggle-born status be damned. He was a hard worker who emulated Hufflepuff’s values, putting steadfast effort into everything he did in order to accomplish his goals. His life had been steady, unsurprising,  _ ordinary _ for three years; sure, it might’ve been a little boring, but that was how he liked it - no surprises, no jumpscares, no shock factor. Kiyoomi had always valued routine.

That was what encompassed his thoughts as he looked out at the steadily shimmering lake, sitting in his little cove (alone, as always - it just felt wrong to sit there with someone other than Sunny). Realizing that he had, once again, let his thoughts get the best of him, he stood up and dusted his robes off, starting his journey back to the castle. Just another regular day had gone by - just another routine that he had followed.

\------------------------------

“Sakusa -  _ oof _ !” Kiyoomi jolted forward as he felt a small body collide with his back. He turned around and glimpsed a flash of royal blue and blonde hair.

“Yachi! Are you okay?” Kiyoomi bent down to grab the fifth-year Ravenclaw from the ground, where she had fallen after bouncing off of him. When she was on her feet again, Yachi shook her head rapidly and then reached behind into her satchel for something. Kiyoomi craned his head to see what it was, but got quickly shoved back when she shoved a piece of parchment in his face.

“Sakusa! Oh, your hair is pink again.” Kiyoomi conjured up a mirror in order to look. He had a habit of unconsciously using his Metamorphmagus abilities when his emotions spiked or he was caught off guard, and now was no different - his hair was a shocking shade of bubblegum pink. He quickly switched it back to its normal ebony black, just in time for Yachi to catch his attention again. “I thought the pink looked good..Anyways look, look!”

“Yachi. That’s your Magical History essay.”

“Oops!” Yachi shoved the paper back into her bag and then shifted her arm around, tongue sticking out of the corner of her mouth all the while. “Give me one second! The Extension Charm I put on this thing makes everything so much  _ harder _ to find because everything is  _ sooo  _ roomy, you know? Of course you would know, you’re a charms master -  _ AHA! _ ”

Kiyoomi was sent reeling back again as Yachi shoved another parchment in his face. He squinted at the blurry words in front him, trying to read them. When he figured out what they said, his eyes widened and his heart stopped.

**The Triwizard Tournament has once again come to Hogwarts!**

**As you all know, the Triwizard Tournament is an ancient tournament between wizards to win glory, Galleons, and more! We honor the tradition by hosting it every 50 years, and inviting students from both the Durmstrang Institute and Beauxbatons Academy of Magic to compete alongside us. Students from the aforementioned sister schools will be arriving on October 20th. It’s all going to be a fun competition with the use of magic and critical thinking, and it will all end with the Yule Ball in January!**

**You must be in sixth year or older to participate! Two participants from each school will be chosen to compete this year. The final date of the competition, entering of names, and choosing of competitors will be announced soon! Good luck, students!**

  * **Headmaster Nekomata**



“-usa! Sakusa! Hey, Sakusa!”

“Huh?” Kiyoomi was shaken out of his stupor, literally, when Yachi grabbed his shoulders and shook him violently. “Oh, yeah, the Triwizard Tournament. Uh-huh.”

Yachi cocked one blonde eyebrow, eyes narrowed. “You forgot, didn’t you?”

It didn’t matter that Kiyoomi was at least a foot taller than the girl, or that he was older and more experienced in wizardry. God, Yachi’s terrifying stare down was worse than when he faced a Boggart in his Defense Against the Dark Arts class. He shook his head.

“ _ What _ did I tell you?!” Yachi grabbed Kiyoomi’s arm and dragged him in the direction of the Hufflepuff dorms. “You’ve been running yourself  _ ragged _ and for what? Now you’re forgetting things, too? You’re already part of the best of Hogwarts. You know this, you aren’t stupid! So,” Yachi opened the door to the Hufflepuff common room and shoved him in. “You are going to get some  _ rest _ and  _ quiet time _ and then since you seem to have let stress take over your  _ entire brain _ , remember that as a prefect you have to go talk to the Headmaster about your responsibilities in the tournament. And also, your eyes changed color again, so fix that. Got it?”

Kiyoomi rapidly nodded and uttered a quick apology to Yachi, promising multiple times to not overwork himself again. After a few  _ extra _ promises, she finally deemed it acceptable to leave Kiyoomi to his own devices, exiting the common room with a wave. Kiyoomi began making his way up the stairs, contemplating what the coming of the Triwizard Tournament really  _ meant _ .

_ I’m going to see Atsumu again _ .

Of course, Kiyoomi hadn’t heard from the man in years. He didn’t even know if Atsumu still attended Durmstrang to be honest - he could only assume so since the school was one of the best in the region, besides Hogwarts and Beauxbatons. But the fact still remained: even if Atsumu went to Beauxbatons, he would still be at Hogwarts for the Tournament. It was certain that Kiyoomi would be seeing him once again.

He made it to his dorm room, opening the door and flopping onto the bed with a drawn out sigh.  _ It’s been so long _ , Kiyoomi thought,  _ what’s the procedure for this? Are we going to talk? Does he still hate me? _ He rolled over with a groan, internally cursing his bad luck while clutching a pillow to his chest.  _ Whatever. This is a problem for later _ .

Kiyoomi fell asleep dreaming of glimmering brown eyes and a lilting accent tinged with playfulness.

\------------------------------

Once Kiyoomi woke up from his much-needed nap (he sent a prayer of gratitude to Yachi, his saving grace), he made his way to Headmaster Nekomata’s office to receive instructions on his responsibilities as a prefect during the Triwizard Tournament. He knocked twice on Nekomata’s door before receiving a signal to enter, and swung open the door to see Oikawa Tooru sitting adjacent to the headmaster, leaning back and legs spread.

“Saku-chan!” Oikawa sing-songed. “How’ve you been? Tiring yourself out again?”

“Why does everyone assume that I run myself into the ground everyday?” Kiyoomi grumbled.

“I’m right, though, aren’t I?” Oikawa fluttered his lashes.

“.....I swear I won’t hesitate to  _ Serpensortia _ your ass Oikawa -”

“Don’t get me all excited!”

“Alright, alright, boys!” Headmaster Nekomata chuckled as he watched the bickering between them. “Let’s settle down! We don’t want two of Hogwarts’ finest attacking each other, now do we?”

Oikawa leaned towards the side closest to Kiyoomi and looped an arm around his shoulders, pulling Kiyoomi in close, cheek-to-cheek with Oikawa. “Nekomata-sensei, you have nothing to worry about! Saku-chan and I are best friends, right?”

Kiyoomi muttered, “Best is an overstatement.”   
  
Oikawa gasped dramatically, placing a battle-scarred hand on his chest and acting as if he had been hit by a  _ Stupefy _ charm. “I’m hurt, Saku-chan! No, Sakusa-san! That’s the only thing I’ll be calling you now since we apparently  _ aren’t _ best friends!”

Truthfully, Kiyoomi harbored mostly positive feelings towards Oikawa. He even considered Oikawa a close friend. Although the guy could be a bit overbearing and intrusive, he only did it to protect himself - something that Kiyoomi could understand. Oikawa, as a fellow Muggle-born, had suffered through the same things Kiyoomi did (sometimes, even worse since Oikawa had the gall to fight back). Kiyoomi had found him once in fourth year, crying in the boy’s second-floor bathroom, because his upperclassmen had carved into his hands in order to render him unable to hold a wand. Kiyoomi had taken Oikawa to the infirmary (silently, no pity offered) and left him there with a quiet, “I’ll be back”. Then, he had gone and snuck Bulbadox Juice into their cups in the Great Hall and watched as boils began to appear on their skin. The upperclassmen had seen him, but all he did was stare them down and leave. The next day, when Kiyoomi accompanied Oikawa out of the infirmary and to the Slytherin dorms, the same upperclassmen saw them together and scattered. Oikawa had thanked Kiyoomi (even though Kiyoomi had never told him what he did; Oikawa was just that perceptive) and then asked for help regarding his spellwork. Now, Oikawa was one of the most feared duelers in not only Hogwarts, but the entire region. He had even gone a step above Kiyoomi to master wandless magic in record time.

“Fine. We’re friends. Now get off of me!” Kiyoomi batted Oikawa’s arm away with a grunt.

“I knew you loved me, Saku-chan!” Oikawa pushed back his seat and stood up, emerald green robes swishing with his movements. “Now, I have to go makeup a Divination test, so I’ll see you at dinner, ‘kay? We can split some of the stuff for the Tournament, if that’s okay with you, Sensei?”

“Sure, sure,” Nekomata waved Oikawa out. “Let me just tell Kiyoomi-kun here what he has to do and you guys can split the responsibilities as you see fit to save time. You can also involve the other prefects if you want. Now go take that test!”

Oikawa saluted, comically exaggerated as always, and swept out of the room. 

Now alone, Nekomata turned to Kiyoomi and smiled. “Kiyoomi-kun, how are your Metamorphmagus skills developing? I haven’t checked up on you since a few weeks ago.”

“They’re coming about, Sensei,” Kiyoomi replied. “I’ve been able to change my hair color and style to all styles possible, and been able to alter my facial features and structure to pretty much the same degree as well. I’m still working on the corporeal features, but otherwise I would say I’m doing quite well, thank you for asking.”

“Of course, my boy!” Nekomata leaned back in his chair. “Anything for my favorite student, but don’t tell anyone that.” He winked at Kiyoomi, then gave a rumbling laugh. “Anyways, let’s get into your prefect duties for the Tournament, now. Oh, I meant to ask as well - are you planning on participating?”

“Yes, I am.” Kiyoomi answered definitively. “I’m stronger now, thanks to you and my own hard work. I’m not the type to need validation from anyone, but regardless I want to shove the results of that work in all of the bigots’ faces - to show them what a Muggleborn can really do.”

“Well said, Kiyoomi-kun!” Nekomata grinned. “I expected nothing less from you. I’ll be rooting for you! Now, let’s get into these duties.”

Nekomata proceeded to list what Kiyoomi had to do regarding the Tournament, which wasn’t much, in all honesty. He had to show a section of the foreign students around, all of whom would be assigned to him once they arrived (the unpredictability of who exactly he’d be hosting made his palms sweat a bit), and just give them a tour around the school, get them used to the place they’d be staying for the next few months. Since he was considered a Charms master, he’d be helping with the Age Line Charm that would keep younger students from entering their name in the Goblet of Fire. He’d also have to help with some of the organizational aspects, which was what he would be splitting with Oikawa later that night. When Nekomata was done, he walked Kiyoomi to the door and gave him a solid pat on the back goodbye (and when he said solid, he  _ meant  _ solid - how did that man still have so much strength at his age?). 

Kiyoomi made his way to the Great Hall, thoughts stirring about the Triwizard Tournament; however, one kept pushing and shoving its way to the forefront of his mind.

_ Two more weeks.  _ He clenched his fist just a little harder, walked just a bit faster.  _ Two more weeks and I see Atsumu again _ .

\------------------------------

The two weeks passed by faster than Kiyoomi wanted them to. He’d been so cluttered by prefect responsibilities, schoolwork, and setting up for Quidditch tryouts that he’d barely even had time to close his eyes. He’d mostly survived on little drops of Wideye Potion and sheer willpower. Kiyoomi was actually heading back to his dorm to get a good hour of naptime when he saw Tendou Satori barrelling his way from the opposite direction.

“Sakusa-kun!!!” Tendou waved furiously at him. “Hi!!!”

“Hello, Tendou,” Kiyoomi inclined his head. “How are you?”

“I’m good, good as can be with everything going on, of course!” Tendou then abruptly whirled on Kiyoomi, making him almost lose his balance. “But you’re not. Look at those dark circles and sunken cheeks! You look like you just made out with a dementor! Can’t you just Metamorphmagus some good skin?”

Kiyoomi batted Tendou’s poking fingers out of his face, replying, “It doesn’t work like that. And I know I look like shit. I was actually going back to take a nap before the foreign students come tonight. Now, can I go do that so I don’t look like a truck ran over me?”

“Nonsense!” Tendou grabbed Kiyoomi’s wrist and dragged him up the stairway to the Hufflepuff common room. “Miracle Boy Satori can get you  _ all _ dolled up for tonight. And then you can sleep. Looking presentable comes first, Sakusa- _ kun _ !”   
  


“Tendou, isn’t makeup going to smear if I sleep with it on?”

Ever the experimenter, Tendou just wiggled a finger in disagreement, saying, “Nope! I’ve been tinkering around with a few spells that should make you look pretty good. And before you say anything! Yes, I have tried them all out. So, you for sure won’t look stupid! Yay!”

“Whatever,” Kiyoomi sat down and pulled his curls out of his face to give Tendou a clear space to work with. “Just get on with it so I can finally get some sleep.”

“I promise,” Tendou slyly grinned. “You’ll look like a dream come true!”

\------------------------------

It was already around an hour before the arrival of the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang students when Kiyoomi woke up. When he went to grab his formal robes, he passed by a mirror and was pleasantly surprised by what he saw. The spells that Tendou had used on him seemed to make his hair look shinier and softer, almost like black silk. His eyes were near radiant, the undereye circles worked away by Tendou’s intricate magic and the magic of sleep. His skin wasn’t as discolored as before, so the dark color of his moles highly contrasted with the fairness of his skin.  _ I should let Tendou know I owe him a few favors when I see him _ , Kiyoomi thought.

Just as he finished pinning the golden prefect badge to his robes, a little ginger blur appeared in his room.

“Woah! I’m still getting the hang of Apparating!” Hinata Shoyo, a fellow Hufflepuff and Kiyoomi’s [favorite] tutee, smiled widely up at him, almost wriggling in his spot on Kiyoomi’s armchair. “Sakusa-san, are you ready to go? I’m so excited to meet all the new people!”

“Sure, Shoyo-kun, let’s go.” Sakusa whisked out of his room, gesturing for Shoyo to follow. “Isn’t your magical penpal from Beauxbatons?”

“Yep! I don’t know his name, though. I’ll figure it out, I’m sure!” 

Kiyoomi chuckled. “I’m sure you will. Ah, we’re here.”’

He was truly impressed by the state of the Great Hall when he and Shoyo arrived. The ceiling had been altered to reflect an aurora borealis, with colors ranging from green to blue to purple. The hundreds of floating candles were all lit perfectly so that their flames resembled starlight. The air smelled delightful, infused with the delicate smell of rosemary and other herbs, along with the aroma of the grand layout of food that was now presented on the tables. All in all, the place looked magical. 

“Sakusa-san, Sakusa-san, look!” Shoyo excitedly hopped up and down, tugging on Kiyoomi’s sleeve. “You can see the other kids arriving! Holy shit, that’s so cool!!”

Kiyoomi took a peek out of one of the Hall’s windows, and saw that Shoyo was correct. Durmstrang’s large, wooden ship had just submerged from the ocean and was steadily making its way towards land. In the night sky, dozens of glittering light blue carriages steered by winged horses, courtesy of Beauxbatons Academy, were slowly drifting towards the designated landing areas near the Hogwarts gates. When Kiyoomi turned around, he also noticed the steady flow of the other Hogwarts students into the Great Hall.

“Shoyo, I have to go stand on the stage with the other prefects now. Can you find someone to stay with until later?” 

“Sure, Sakusa-san! Kenma’s probably around here somewhere. I’ll see you later!” 

After Shoyo dashed off with a wave and a close-eyed grin, Kiyoomi turned around and saw Oikawa waving to him. He gave a quick nod back before walking to his place on the Hogwarts stage, on the right side of Headmaster Nekomata’s podium. Next to him was the Ravenclaw prefect, Kiyoko Shimizu, and on the left side were the Slytherin prefect, Oikawa, and the Gryffindor prefect, Daichi Sawamura. As he arranged his robes one last time, a spotted cat slowly made its way up the stage and hopped on top of the podium, before morphing into none other than Headmaster Nekomata. 

“You ready, kids?” Nekomata asked. All of the prefects nodded before facing forwards just as the doors of the Great Hall opened for the second time that night, ushering in the foreign students. 

First were the Beauxbatons students, dressed to the nines in blue silk robes that glimmered with each step they took. To add to the extravagance, thick turquoise capes flowed behind them and a hat adorned by a feather rested on their heads. All of the students walked in unison down the hall, greeting the Headmaster with an elegant incline of the head once they arrived in front of his podium. Once Nekomata acknowledged their greeting, they moved to their designated side.

And then Durmstrang entered. Their presence was grand, commanding,  _ fierce _ . Decked out in brown, wool tunics and a blood-red coat lined in thick fur draped across one shoulder, the Durmstrang students definitely made their power known. Kiyoomi scanned the area for anyone he would recognize, and what his eyes landed on metaphorically punched all the air out of him.

There he was. Miya Atsumu, in all of his flesh-and-blood glory, standing near the front of the group. He was looking to the side, chattering animatedly with another classmate, so Kiyoomi assumed that he hadn’t seen him standing on the stage just yet. His eyes were just as bright as when Kiyoomi last looked at them, that damned smile still ever-so-inviting and as warm as sunlight (just as dazzling, too). There were a few differences that came with age, of course. His shoulders were much broader, and those  _ thighs _ ? Kiyoomi might need a Reviving Spell later if he kept staring at them. Atsumu’s hair was now piss blonde, though, which was the only thing that made him any less attractive, unfortunately. But other than those minor physical differences, it was undeniable that this man was the same one who had stolen Kiyoomi’s attention (and heart) all those years ago.

_ I guess it’s true, what they say, _ Kiyoomi thought.  _ Absence really does make the heart grow fonder. _

“Welcome, wizards and witches of both Beauxbatons Academy and Durmstrang Institute, to Hogwarts!” Nekomata boomed once everyone was settled. “We’re so glad you’re joining us these next few months for the Triwizard Tournament. Now, let me just give you some preliminary information before we get into the gist of things.”

Kiyoomi tuned out for most of Nekomata’s speech, already having proofread it for the Headmaster weeks before the present day. His gaze was focused on Atsumu still, who somehow hadn’t stopped whispering to his classmate throughout the entire walk from the doors to the Durmstrang section of the Hall. Kiyoomi’s heart was racing, thinking about the fact that if Atsumu looked up right at that moment, they would meet eyes. What would Kiyoomi see in them, he wondered. Hatred? Disgust? To be perfectly honest, Kiyoomi  _ was _ scared to see those things in Atsumu’s eyes, but a bigger part of him wanted Atsumu to see how strong he was now, see who he had worked to become. He couldn’t have Atsumu remembering him as just another dainty, weak Muggle-born, now could he?

“And now, to introduce our prefects, who will be your main tour guides!” Nekomata gestured to them. “First, we have Daichi Sawamura of Gryffindor, a steadfast and courageous student who was able to negotiate with the centaurs in order to secure a deal for our students to study their section of the forest. His work has allowed us to learn so much more about the plants and animals residing there.”

_ Clap, clap, clap _ . Daichi gave a polite smile and acknowledged the crowd. Atsumu hadn’t looked up.

“Next, we have Oikawa Tooru from Slytherin! His cunning has won him the title of National Solo Duelling Champion, along with National Duos Duelling Champion as a partner of one of our other prefects, who we will be getting to shortly. His amazing use of strategy and wandless magic has strengthened our school’s reputation for years to come!”

_ Clap, clap, clap _ . Oikawa stuck out his tongue and used two fingers to throw up a peace sign. Atsumu hadn’t looked up.

“Now, this lovely lady is Kiyoko Shimizu, our Ravenclaw prefect! Her research in multiple fields of studies, including but not limited to Potions and Botany, has made great strides in wizard knowledge. Many of her works have already been published by wizarding institutes internationally!”

_ Clap, clap, clap _ . Kiyoko daintily waved and brushed a lock of hair behind her ear. Atsumu hadn’t looked up.

“And finally, we have our Hufflepuff prefect, Sakusa Kiyoomi. He is the embodiment of Hufflepuff’s value of effort, as he’s not only the other half of our National Duos Duelling Champion partnership, but also his Quidditch team’s captain and a skilled Metamorphmagus, all accomplished through his steady hard work. Please give it up for our prefects!”

_ Clap, clap, clap _ . Kiyoomi inclined his head to the crowd, gave a small smile. When he lifted his head up, he was caught in a dark gaze. Atsumu had finally looked up, mouth gaping and eyes widening.  _ Good. Look at me. See how far I’ve come _ . 

\------------------------------

Once introductions were over, the prefects were excused from the stage and went to sit with their respective Houses. Luckily, the Hufflepuff table was on the opposite side from the Durmstrang table, so Kiyoomi was able to put off dealing with Atsumu for at least a night. He chose to sit instead with two of his Quidditch teammates, Hoshiumi Kourai and Bokuto Koutarou, the latter of which was screaming about some attractive Beauxbatons student he “had a moment” with. Knowing Bokuto, the Beauxbatons guy had probably spared him a parting glance and Bokuto had fallen in love.

“Oy, Sakusa, are you still gonna be able to hold Quidditch tryouts because of your whole prefect thing?” Hoshiumi asked loudly, opening his mouth wide enough that Kiyoomi could see the food he was chewing. Gross. “Because if you can’t, I can fill in for you for sure! As vice-captain, it’s my duty to pick up your slack!”

“First of all, stop talking while you eat. It’s disgusting. Second of all,” Kiyoomi crossed his arms. “There is no slack to pick up. I’ll be there.”

“What about your tour group, Saku-chan? Are you just gonna leave them in the castle or something?” Kiyoomi swore on Merlin that he would kill Oikawa for teaching Bokuto to use that nickname. 

“No, they can just sit in the bleachers while we host tryouts. It’ll be part of their tour.”

As Hoshiumi and Bokuto continued their excited chatter about the audience they would have soon, Kiyoomi just leaned back and went back into his head. He’d been worrying about the possibility of having to be Atsumu’s tour guide the past few weeks, but now that he thought about it, seeing that head of disgustingly blond hair in the bleachers wouldn’t be so bad. 

It wouldn’t be bad at all.

\------------------------------

The next morning, Kiyoomi yawned as he walked out of the dorms and made his way towards the front of the school. He had tried to perk up a bit by drinking some pumpkin juice, but the fact that Kiyoomi had specifically waited until later to clean in order to avoid Atsumu probably contributed greatly to his fatigue (not that he’d admit it). Either way, he had to maintain some semblance of wakefulness today since he’d be assigned a tour group.

When he made it to the school courtyard, he was met by countless new faces and scattered uniforms. Headmaster Nekomata was on the center steps, talking with Professor Ukai. The Divination professor was probably the one in charge of assigning students since he was able to measure compatibility and all that. Kiyoomi made his way to the tour guides’ designated area, and stood next to Ravenclaw’s Sugawara Koushi, another volunteer tour guide, exchanging pleasantries until the event began.

“Good morning, students!” Nekomata’s voice spanned the courtyard, aided by a  _ Sonorus _ spell. “We hope you enjoyed the festivities last night! I won’t keep you here long, I know you can’t wait to see the castle and meet your guides. I’ll first call your guide to stand here, and then I will call you by your name to assign you to a group. Now, first guide, Kiyoko Shimuzu!”

Kiyoomi stood there as guide after guide was called. Only a few foreign students were left, but he couldn’t really pick out that specific blonde hair from the dwindling crowd. He perked to attention when he heard his name called, and made his way to the front.  _ It’s fine _ , he reasoned.  _ If it happens, it happens. I’ll just make sure to give him and my group the best damn tour of Hogwarts they’ll ever have. _

“Group 9! This will be your tour guide, Sakusa Kiyoomi-kun, a 6th year student from Hufflepuff.” Nekomata consulted his list. “Now, here is who’s going to be in this group. From Beauxbatons - Suna Rintarou, Akaashi Keiji, Kageyama Tobio, and Iwaizumi Hajime. From Durmstrang - Komori Motoya, Ushijima Wakatoshi, Miya Osamu, and Miya Atsumu.”

Kiyoomi drew a sharp inhale upon hearing the last name, and looked over at Nekomata, who just gave him a wink. Damn it. He shouldn’t have trusted the old man - he’d always been way too scheming for his own good.

He looked forward and composed himself right as the members of his group made their way to where he was standing, putting on a small smile and greeting them. “Hi guys. Let’s get out of here and we can introduce ourselves to each other.” Kiyoomi conveniently left out the fact that he had already been introduced to one of the members, ignoring said person altogether.

“KIYOOMI!” Kiyoomi grunted as something heavy landed on his back and latched around his neck. “Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten your favorite cousin, now! Oh, that’s a pretty shade of blue!”

Oh yeah, he’d forgotten that his cousin was in his tour group since he’d been too occupied with thoughts of someone else. A mistake, since his cousin was just as chaotic as the Whomping Willow itself - one minute back and he had already caused the activation of Kiyoomi’s Metamorphmagus abilities. “Motoya, I literally just got my hair to stay black. Get off of me so I can bring the rest of the group to somewhere quieter! And change my hair!” He blindly slapped his hand around and smirked when one hit landed on Motoya’s head, causing him to yelp and let go.

“Grumpy as always, eh, Omi-kun?” 

And the smirk was gone. Kiyoomi looked over his shoulder to see Atsumu with a cocky smirk on his face and a hand placed on a jutted hip. Standing next to him was a near lookalike, whose only differences were that he had grey hair instead of blonde, and he currently had a disgusted look on his face instead of an arrogant one.

“Ya scrub!” The carbon-copy hit Atsumu on the head, dislodging Atsumu’s smarmy expression. “Ya just got here and yer already causin’ trouble? I swear, I can’t take ya anywhere!”

As Atsumu was rubbing his head and complaining, the grey haired twin turned to Kiyoomi and said, “I am so sorry ya have to deal with his sorry ass. I’m Miya Osamu. Just call me Osamu.”

Kiyoomi sighed. He could already  _ feel _ the stress that this group would put on him. “Nice to meet you, Osamu. I’m Sakusa. And you know what, let’s just do our introductions here to save time.”

Kiyoomi led the group to the Hufflepuff common room, since it was almost right next to where they were. He gestured for all of them to sit down and then waved his wand so that the fireplace  _ wooshed _ to life.

“Well!” Motoya smiled beatifically. “I guess I’ll start! I’m Komori Motoya, a sixth-year, and I was originally a Hogwarts student, but I’m participating in the exchange program right now. Ummm, I like firewhiskey and Transfiguration! You go next!”

Motoya tapped the Beauxbatons student next to him, who blushed a little before returning to his normal expression. He looked tired of the group already. Kiyoomi sympathized.

“Hey, everyone. I’m Suna Rintarou, sixth-year at Beauxbatons. I like butterbeer. You go next, piss-head.”

“Shaddup, Sunarin!” Suna quirked an eyebrow at Atsumu’s overly casual speech. “Tsk, everyone here is so damn grumpy! I’m Miya Atsumu, sixth-year at Durmstrang. I came to Hogwarts once, awhile ago, fer the exchange program -” Atsumu looked subtly through his fringe at Kiyoomi. “But it didn’t work out, so now I’m back at Durmstrang. I like Quidditch and I’m plannin’ ta enter the Tournament, along with my idiot brother.”

“Yer callin’ me an idiot?” Osamu glared at his twin. “Didn’t ya just fall off the ship as it was resurfacin’ yesterday? Scrub!” Kiyoomi suppressed a chuckle.

“I am  _ not _ a scrub,  _ yer _ the scrub -”

“Atsumu, shut up.” Kiyoomi said. “Osamu, go ahead.”

“Omi!!!! Yer so mean to me!!” Atsumu whined. Kiyoomi ignored the look of surprise Osamu gave him at the display of familiarity. “C’mon, don’t I get some type o’ acquaintance privilege since I knew ya before??” 

“Nope. Let’s keep this going.” 

The circle continued on to Akaashi Keiji, the Beauxbatons student that Bokuto was infatuated with. His talents were in Herbology, and he’d apparently discovered 3 new plants on one of his mission trips. Kageyama Tobio, a Quidditch expert, was the youngest out of all of them (a fifth-year) and relatively quiet, choosing only to speak a bit of his Quidditch position, a Seeker. Iwaizumi Hajime, a seventh-year, seemed like an older brother figure to him, strong and imposing but simultaneously softly coaxing the younger boy to speak a bit more. Hulking Ushijima Wakatoshi was the last one to speak, choosing to discuss his expertise regarding duelling. In fact, Kiyoomi recognized him from the last National Duelling Championship he attended - he had found his use of spell-chains quite impressive (and a bit hot), while Oikawa had just scoffed and called the display flashy. Once Ushijima was done with his introduction, he mentioned his recognition of Kiyoomi and acknowledged his prestige, which admittedly made Kiyoomi blush a bit.

He didn’t notice Atsumu’s glare, targeted at Ushijima and so focused that it could’ve burned a hole straight through his head.

“Alright, all I really had planned today was introductions,” Kiyoomi started. “If you have any questions, feel free to ask. I have to go somewhere now, but we’ll pick this up again tomorrow. I’ll meet you guys near the Astronomy Tower in the morning.”

With that, the group dispersed. Well, all except for one other person.

“Omi,” Atsumu was leaning against the door of the common room, hands in his trousers’ pockets. “Can we talk?”

Kiyoomi wasn’t surprised at Atsumu’s request, due to the numerous glances the boy had thrown his way during the introductions. That didn’t mean he wanted to deal with Atsumu and the memories he brought with him this early, though. “Atsumu, there’s nothing to -“

“Omi, just let me say what I needta say, yeah?” Kiyoomi reluctantly nodded. “Look, I’m gonna be here fer awhile, thanks to the tournament. That’s not gonna change. But I don’t want it to be awkward between us the entire time, since yer my guide ‘n everythin’. I know ya probably hate me or somethin’ -“  _ Hate him? Kiyoomi thought that he was the hated one. _ “But how ‘bout a truce fer now, hm?”

Kiyoomi took a deep breath. “Atsumu, I don’t hate you. I just thought I had to clear that up.” Atsumu’s thick eyebrows shot straight up into his fringe, but he stayed silent. “And I don’t want it to be awkward either. So...yeah, truce. Until you do something stupid to piss me off.”

“Ya know what, fuck ya, Omi!” Atsumu said indignantly. He looked like he was about to go on another tirade, but was interrupted by Kiyoomi’s light chuckling. 

“Still as provokable as always, Atsumu,” Kiyoomi laughed a little harder. When he calmed down, Atsumu’s eyes were downcast, his fist clenched around the fabric of his coat. “What’s wrong?”

A beat of silence passed. “Ya know, ya’ve changed, Omi. I saw it as soon as I saw ya in the Hall yesterday. I mean, I have too but...ya’ve really changed.”

“And what? Is that a bad thing?” Kiyoomi felt a little defensive.

“Nah, Omi,” Atsumu looked up and  _ oh, his smile. _ “It’s a good thin’. A really good thin’. Ya seem happier, ya know. Happier than before.”

And if Kiyoomi’s heart cracked just a little bit at that very moment, no one had to know.

\------------------------------

After his conversation with Atsumu, Kiyoomi made his way to his cove beside the lake. It had been a long day, and he really just needed some time alone in order to recharge. He had laid his robe on the ground and was about to lay back when he heard rustling in the bushes behind him. Kiyoomi quickly drew his wand out, and began to approach the bushes carefully - god knows what was lurking around these days. The cove had grown a bit unruly due to the lack of proper tending, so Kiyoomi couldn’t be sure that some dangerous creature wasn’t hiding in the foliage.

“Hey!” Kiyoomi yelled. “Whatever, or whoever, you are, come out before I stun you!”

The bushes rustled just a bit more before stopping completely. Kiyoomi stayed a little longer to make sure nothing was going to attack him, and when nothing came out he made to move away. However, he was stopped by a red blur flying into his face.

“What the fuck!” Kiyoomi coughed, trying to get air back into his lungs after being knocked onto the ground. “What the actual -”

Kiyoomi’s speech faltered as he looked at the offender. In front of him was a large, rusty red fox with a bushy tail and tongue lolling out. Funnily enough, a blonde tuft of hair sat atop its head. The fox bent down to curiously sniff at Kiyoomi’s hand, and when it was finished with its inspection, it placed a paw on top. A mark adorned the big paw - a mark that looked just like a sun. Kiyoomi’s eyes widened in recognition.

“Sunny?”

At the mention of the name, the fox yelped happily and jumped straight into Kiyoomi’s arms, licking his face all the while. Kiyoomi cackled in delight, trying to give his friend a hug even though the animal kept squirming out of his reach. When both of them had calmed down, they sat facing the lake together, with Sunny curled up in Kiyoomi’s lap and Kiyoomi stroking the fox gently from head to tail.

“It’s been awhile since we’ve seen each other,” Kiyoomi sighed. “I wish you could talk to me so that you could tell me what happened, why you left. You look like you’ve changed.”

Sunny purred contentedly. Kiyoomi continued petting him, saying, “I’ve got a lot to catch you up on. And a lot to tell you soon probably, with all the chaos of the Tournament. I’m really glad you came back. I missed you so much.” At this, Sunny snuggled deeper into Kiyoomi’s legs, tail swishing over them as if to comfort him. Kiyoomi smiled.

“Now, let’s start with Miya Atsumu….”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you so much for reading again! kudos and comments are always appreciated! feel free to yell with me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/hellfire1515)


	3. chance beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Don’t be too sad when I beat ya, Omi,” Atsumu purred. 
> 
> Kiyoomi met Atsumu’s gaze head-on. “You have a lot of unfounded confidence, Atsumu. I should be the one saying that to you.”
> 
> An expression that could only be described as glee overtook Atsumu’s face.
> 
> “The first challenge will be next week, which should give you ample time to prepare,” Nekomata announced. “You will not get any hints for this one, just the notice that you will only be allowed to use your wands, and any other magic you possess in your body. Good luck, competitors! May the best wizard win.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi guys! this is the last chapter in our journey. i hope you enjoy!

“Hurry up, get into formation! We don’t have all day!” 

Kiyoomi clapped his hands together quickly, signaling the start of the tryouts for the Hufflepuff Quidditch team. He gave a fleeting glance to the bleachers, where his tour group was sitting. He’d guided them to the best seat in the field prior to grabbing his broom, since his excuse for leaving them was to give them the “Hogwarts Quidditch experience”; really, he just had to fulfill his duties as Quidditch captain and run tryouts. No way in hell was he letting Hoshiumi take over - the last time that happened, the Snitch had gotten lodged in someone’s windpipe.

“Alright, newbies, so as you know, I’m the captain of the Hufflepuff Quidditch team, and a Beater,” Kiyoomi started. “My vice is Hoshiumi Kourai here, a Chaser, along with Aran Ojiro and Washio Tatsuki. Bokuto Koutarou is our other Beater, and our Keeper is Hyakuzawa Yuudai. Our Seeker is Hinata Shoyo. Get yourself acquainted with these people, because you’re going to be looking out for them, as opponents or teammates, during the game.”

Kiyoomi had planned everything out from beginning to end, because he was meticulous and NOT because he didn’t want to accidentally embarrass himself in front of Atsumu. Speaking of the devil, Kiyoomi could see a blur of yellow and waving arms from the sidelines as he mounted his broom. If he listened a bit more closely, he could’ve probably even heard the little cheers of, “Omi-kun! OMI-OMI!! GO OMI!” Kiyoomi hoped Atsumu wasn’t idiotic enough to realize that they weren’t actually playing a real game. The tryout was planned like this: the members of the team would be split into two teams, along with the newbies. Then, they’d play against each other until the Snitch was caught or someone reached 200 points first. It was understandable enough, and it allowed Kiyoomi to see all the newbies properly and gauge their abilities. 

The game went smoothly. Both teams were working well together, and the newbies seemed to have a good grasp of their brooms and the basic play already, which made Kiyoomi’s job much easier. When he flew by the stands, he was graced with the awestruck looks of the other students, and Atsumu’s dopey grin and double thumbs-up. And really, if Kiyoomi started looping and doing more tricks after seeing that, no one had to know.

When he exited the stadium with his team, the foreign students were already waiting for him at its entrance. Kageyama was quietly propped up against a wall, Akaashi was fiddling with his scarf, and Motoya and Suna were standing closely, whispering in each other’s ears. Interesting.

“Omi-omi!” A firm clap to the back had him wheezing. “Great game!”   
  


“Atsumu, what the  _ fuck _ -” Kiyoomi threw a hand back, effectively slapping the menace in the face. Ever since their little truce, Atsumu had been getting more lax and even  _ flirty _ with Kiyoomi. He still didn’t know how he felt about it.

Before he could continue his reign of terror, Kiyoomi was interrupted by Hinata’s bright tone, asking, “Sakusa-san! Is this your tour group? Uwahh, so cool!! Can you introduce us??”

Kiyoomi couldn’t say no, so he ran through the entire group, saying their names and school of origin. When he was done, he did the same for his Quidditch team. Funnily enough, when Kageyama was introduced as a fellow Seeker, Hinata immediately bounded over to him and started to question him about his techniques. The taller boy looked mildly uncomfortable and tried looking over to Iwaizumi, who just grinned and shook his head fondly. 

“Alright, we can continue getting to know each other more later, but we have to get to the Choosing of the Names in an hour. The team needs to clean up, so we should go now,” Kiyoomi announced to the group. He wasn’t even sure if Bokuto heard, since he was too busy glancing dreamily at Akaashi. Kiyoomi had half a mind to slap him out of it.

“Omi-omi, ever the bossy one, eh? I like that in a man!”

Kiyoomi was a bit disappointed that Osamu got to Atsumu before he did, but the resounding slap was satisfying to hear all the same.

\------------------------------

As soon as they re-entered the castle, the Quidditch team rushed to the Hufflepuff common room while the foreign students went to go find their respective schools. Kiyoomi, ever busy, only had time to take a quick shower and throw on his robes before rushing to the Great Hall to meet Nekomata and Oikawa. In addition to the headmaster’s magic, which would be igniting the Goblet once again, and Washijo-sensei’s magic as the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Oikawa and Kiyoomi would re-cast the Age charms that would ensure that no one younger than a fifth-year would be able to enter their name in the Goblet.

The process of choosing the names was relatively quick. The potential challengers would write their name on a piece of paper, and then place it inside of the Goblet of Fire. Once all the names had been entered, either Nekomata or Washijo would send a magical signal to the Goblet to signify that the process had been completed. Then, the Goblet would spit out two names per school, and the chosen would compete in the Triwizard Tournament.

Kiyoomi rushed into the Great Hall at almost the same time Oikawa did, judging by his ruffled appearance. The other boy had been showing his tour group the Duelling Club today, so he’d probably just finished up some sparring. When Oikawa caught sight of Kiyoomi, he perked up and waved him over with a smile.

“Kiyo-chan!” Oikawa trilled. “How was your day?”

“I slept for more than five hours, if that’s what you wanted to hear,” Kiyoomi muttered.

“I would’ve preferred an eight hour night, but you take what you can get, right?” Oikawa patted him on the shoulder. “I would prefer if my duelling partner wasn’t half-dead by the next Duelling Championship though, okay?”

Kiyoomi just rolled his eyes. Oikawa talked a big game, but the bags under his eyes just revealed the hypocritical truth behind his words. “Yeah, got it. Are they ready for us?”

“Yep! Nekomata already lit the Goblet, so all we need to do is cast the Age Line and Barrier Charms, and we should be golden!”

As soon as Oikawa finished his sentence, Nekomata himself made his way over to the pair, Washijo in tow. Kiyoomi had always thought it a bit funny seeing the teachers together so often, since one had a constant frown and the other a constant smile. In a way, it reminded him of him and Atsumu as kids.

“Kiyoomi-kun, Tooru-kun!” Nekomata patted them both on the shoulders. “I’m so glad that you’re helping us with the Age Charms! We’re running a bit behind schedule, as you can see -” Nekomata gestured to the various students filing in. “- but with your help we should be able to wrap this up quickly! Kiyoomi-kun, if you could cast the Age Line charm. Tooru-kun, if you could cast the Barrier charm.”

The two nodded quickly and took a quick swig of water. The charms were relatively hard, even for them, so they wanted to stock up on hydration before the magic drained them.

Once they were prepared, Kiyoomi and Oikawa stepped to opposite ends of the circle marked for spell-casting, and began murmuring the proper incantations. As soon as the last word in the sequence was uttered, streams of red and blue magic flew out of their respective wands. Oikawa, a master in wandless magic, finished the admittedly more simple Barrier spell in about 5 minutes, sweat dotting his hairline. Kiyoomi was still rounding the circle slowly, jet of magic aimed carefully at the marked line. There could be untold consequences if the magic went out of control and struck someone else, or god forbid the Goblet, and not the line that Washijo had already prepared. With one last push, Kiyoomi cut the magic from his wand and stood up. He was sure that he was sweating buckets, but it was worth it to see the Age Line flare up majestically, blue flames now swirling around the Goblet.

“Kiyo-chan, your eyes and hair look really cool right now!” Oikawa smiled. “I love the blonde. It really brings out the gold of your eyes!”

“Are you kidding me?” Kiyoomi quickly summoned up another mirror. Oh god, he looked like a boy band wannabe gone wrong. Obviously other people thought the same, since a few were gaping at him openly. He heard a snort and whirled his head around, spotting Miya Atsumu covering his mouth with his hand. He turned back to Oikawa, seething, “You really didn’t think to tell me?”

“Hey, not my fault your Metamorphmagus powers activate when you’re doing intense shit! That Age Line charm probably caused it.”

Oh. He’d forgotten that strenuous activities would increase the chance that he'd lose control of his Metamorphmagus abilities. Whatever, the damage was done. Kiyoomi made the mirror disappear and quickly changed his features back to normal, reveling in the heatwaves that came with his abilities. Then, he turned and uttered a quick “Aguamenti” that caused a stream of water to fly out of the tip of his wand and into Atsumu’s face. 

“Ha! Nice one, Sakusa-kun!” Osamu was doubled over in laughter, Atsumu’s spluttering sending him into a fit. 

“Wow, I didn’t know it was possible for someone to look even more stupid,” Suna said. Kiyoomi noticed that he was holding hands with Motoya now. Kiyoomi made a mental note to poke fun at his cousin for moving so quickly.

Atsumu combed his hand through his wet hair, which Kiyoomi took offense to since it had to be a crime for someone to look that good while soaked. “God, Omi,” Atsumu started. “If ya wanted me wet, all ya had to do was ask!”

This was it. This was the day that Kiyoomi would finally kill Miya Atsumu, his hands around that thick, stupid neck of his. 

“Alright students, settle down!” Saved by the Headmaster. “Now we will commence the Entering of the Names. If all eligible applicants could please write their name on a scrap of paper and place it in the Goblet. Be warned: anyone not of age will be a victim of the Age Line Charm’s traps, spells and potions be damned. Let’s start!”

The first few applicants walked up to the Age Line, hesitating as if they weren’t sure of their own age. As soon as the initial challengers walked past it freely, though, everyone else walked with confidence. He noticed Ushijima going to drop his name in, giving a sideways smile to…..Tendou? Oh, he would definitely be asking the redhead about that later.

A glint of grey hair drew his gaze away from Ushijima. Osamu had gotten up and dropped his name in the Goblet, Atsumu right behind him. He flashed a grin at Kiyoomi as he made his way back to his seat. 

“Oy, you ready?” Oikawa asked. They had decided earlier to put their names in the Goblet together, a show of defiance of sorts among Muggleborns. 

“Yeah, let’s go.”

As expected, a hush covered the room when both Kiyoomi and Oikawa strided across the room, placing their names in the Goblet in unison. He’d like to believe that the Goblet flared a little brighter in response. Kiyoomi snuck a glance at Atsumu as he returned to his seat, expecting shock or even concern, expecting the poor Muggleborn to have no chance of winning the Tournament.

But what met his eyes was none of that. In fact, Atsumu’s eyes were glowing with a competitive fire not that different from that of the Goblet’s. His grin had turned feral. Kiyoomi could read the message he was sending like he would his favorite book, even though no words were exchanged.

_ I’m going to beat you. _

Heh. As if.

“Seems like all the names have been entered,” Nekomata rubbed his hands together joyfully. “Now, let’s see who our competitors will be!” 

Washijo walked over to the Goblet, flicked his wand, turning its fire green as it prepared to spout out the names of the competitors. The first piece of paper shot out, and Washijo clasped it in between his fingers quickly. 

“Miya Atsumu, sixth year, the first competitor of Durmstrang.”

The Durmstrang section erupted in cheers, the other students piling on top of Atsumu and ruffling his hair good-naturedly. Kiyoomi wasn’t surprised - the Goblet chose names based on character, potential, and inherent skill, and Atsumu ranked high in each of those categories.

“Next, Kageyama Tobio, fifth year, the first competitor of Beauxbatons.”

Kiyoomi was actually surprised about that one. He hadn’t even seen the boy place his name in the Goblet, but he was sure that Kageyama would be a tough obstacle to overcome for the other challengers, with his cleverness and raw magical skill.

“And Aran Ojiro, seventh year, the first competitor of Hogwarts.”

Kiyoomi clapped respectfully as Aran took his place next to the other competitors. He actually liked Aran, with his steady presence on the Quidditch team and his reliability as a Hufflepuff upperclassman. If Kiyoomi couldn’t compete, he was glad that Aran could.

“I will be reading the second competitors in succession, so save any commotion for when I’m finished.” Washijo waved his wand once, and three slips of paper flew into his hand. “For the second competitors: Ushijima Wakatoshi, seventh year, of Durmstrang, Iwaizumi Hajime, seventh year, of Beauxbatons, and Sakusa Kiyoomi, sixth year, of Hogwarts. Congratulations, our Triwizard Challengers.”

“Well, we tried,” Oikawa whispered into his ear. “But a Muggleborn’s luck only goes so far. You better win for me, Kiyo-chan!”

“Yeah, yeah of course,” Kiyoomi answered numbly. He was still reeling from actually getting chosen. He walked up to the other competitors, standing in the only empty spot, next to Atsumu. 

“Don’t be too sad when I beat ya, Omi,” Atsumu purred. 

Kiyoomi met Atsumu’s gaze head-on. “You have a lot of unfounded confidence, Atsumu. I should be the one saying that to you.”

An expression that could only be described as glee overtook Atsumu’s face.

“The first challenge will be next week, which should give you ample time to prepare,” Nekomata announced. “You will not get any hints for this one, just the notice that you will only be allowed to use your wands, and any other magic you possess in your body. Good luck, competitors! May the best wizard win.”

\------------------------------

The next week passed by in a blur of prefect duties, magic practice, and Atsumu. His duties as tour guide hadn’t stopped just because he was a Challenger, and Atsumu had been in his ear like a buzzard talking about the Tournament from morning to night time. By the time the challenge rolled around, Kiyoomi had read nearly every book in the library about magical theory and wand spells, and stepped into the tournament arena ready and raring to beat Atsumu into the ground, infatuation be damned.

Stands filled and Expansion Charm cast, the Quidditch stadium seemed ten times its regular size. Kiyoomi walked over to where Minister of Magic Kugisaki stood with the other competitors. He was holding a brown, burlap sack that seemed to be moving around.

“Sakusa-san, you’re here!” Minister Kugisaki exclaimed. “Great, we can explain the first challenge now.”

“Late on the first day, Omi? Didn’t expect ya ta be slackin’ so early!”   
  


“Shut up, Atsumu. I had things to do, unlike you and your lazy ass.”

“Alright! The first challenge involves magical creatures. Each of you will have to choose a miniature replica of your creature out of this bag and bring back a part of it to pass. For example, a feather from a griffin could serve as that part. Make sure not to harm the creature extremely, unless it harms you first. The first one who returns wins the first challenge, and will not have to participate in the second! So, let’s get choosing. Who would like to start?”

“I’ll start, Minister,” Atsumu drawled. He swaggered to the bag the Minister was holding out, and stuck his hand in. He pulled out what looked like a small, red bird that cawed at him from the palm of his hand. “‘S this a phoenix?”

“Good eye, boy!” Kugisaki pointed. “Be careful of these birds. They might not be extremely dangerous, but they are elusive as all hell!” Kiyoomi smirked. All the easier for him to win.

Since Kiyoomi was the last to arrive, he was the last to choose. Ushijima pulled an Erumpent, Kageyama a Golden Snidget, Aran a Thunderbird, and Iwaizumi a Demiguise. Kiyoomi winced in sympathy for that one - Demiguises were peaceful, but had the power to turn themselves invisible if they felt danger. Kiyoomi was sure Iwaizumi was resourceful, but he had no clue how he would be able to manage that one. Iwaizumi seemed to share the same sentiment, his face growing more stoic as he watched the mini-Demiguise flash in and out of visibility on his palm.

“Sakusa-san, I believe it’s your turn. Only one left!”

Kiyoomi reached in and carefully surrounded the last mini-creature with his hand. He pulled it out and opened his hand, nearly dropping what was revealed. A unicorn was trotting happily around his palm, trying to graze as if his hand was a field full of grass. Kiyoomi’s problem wouldn’t be finding the unicorn - he had a spell for that. It was what he had to do when he found it. Unicorns were notoriously wary of male wizards, and way more comfortable with female witches. If he wasn’t careful, the unicorn could end up killing him in many ways, including but not limited to impaling him with its horn or stomping him to death. It was just his luck that the Triwizard Tournament didn’t guarantee that all competitors would come out alive, too.

“Alright, boys, we’re going to send you out in about ten seconds, after I finish speaking. Your creature will be residing somewhere in the Hogwarts Forest, and it’s up to you to find it. When you gather the piece of your creature, send a green signal into the air and an inspector will come by broom to look at it. Send a red signal if anything goes fatally wrong. Best of luck!”

And with that, the first challenge began.

As soon as the ten-second waiting period was up, Kiyoomi ran towards the west end of the forest, since he had read somewhere that unicorns usually resided in that area. Once he found traces of unicorn horn powder on some trees, he immediately casted a quick tracking spell that would lead him to any unicorn in the area. The spell ended up leading him to a clearing, where he found a single unicorn grazing peacefully on the grass. Kiyoomi almost felt bad, disturbing its peace, but he had to put his feelings aside for the sake of the Tournament. He only wished that there was a way to lessen its discomfort.

An idea came to him at that moment - he could utilize his Metamorphmagus powers. Unicorns were known to be much more willing to comply with witches rather than wizards, so all he had to do was alter his body to look and feel similar to that of a woman’s. He hadn’t attempted anything so advanced in awhile, but it was the perfect moment to try again, he thought. Kiyoomi summoned a mirror and placed it against a tree trunk, stepping back enough so that he could see his entire body. Then, he concentrated on feeling the magic heat spread through his body, identifying the moment his hair lengthened enough to touch his shoulders and his broad shoulders became narrower. When he opened his eyes, Kiyoomi looked almost exactly like a female version of himself - his chest was still that of a man’s and he was still much taller than an average woman, but if he could just get the piece unicorn fur quickly, he wouldn’t have to worry too much about those little discrepancies.

Kiyoomi made the mirror disappear, and shrugged his cloak a bit tighter around his chest so that the flatness would be less visible. Then, he got his wand out, ready for extraction, and inched closely to the unicorn. 

“Hi, buddy,” Kiyoomi murmured. “I’m not going to hurt you. I just need a bit of your fur, is that okay?”

The unicorn reared back a little bit, most likely surprised at the presence of the unknown presence, but Kiyoomi just kept murmuring words of comfort softly and raising his hands placatingly. After about fifteen minutes of calm speech and soothing motions, the unicorn finally allowed Kiyoomi to approach it again. He had to hurry up - he hadn’t seen any smoke signals yet, but the other wizards could be very close to completing the challenge, whereas he hadn’t even touched his creature yet.

“Shh, shh,” Kiyoomi approached slowly, hands raised and wand hidden behind his fingers. “Look! I’m harmless. All I need is some fur, that’s all. I’m not going to take your blood, or your horn, or hurt you in any way. Will you let me?”

Kiyoomi’s reading must’ve paid off, because the unicorn allowed him to stroke its flank and use the extraction spell he had prepared to take a patch of fur from its side. True to his word, the process was painless and surface-level - the unicorn didn’t even so much as flinch.

“Good boy, thank you, thank you so much,” Kiyoomi whispered. He quickly shifted back into his normal self. Then, he shot a green smoke signal into the air.

\------------------------------

“Sakusa Kiyoomi, the winner of our first challenge! His masterful skills allowed him to extract the fur of none other than a unicorn, one of the creatures notoriously known for being the most selective in those who are allowed to touch them! Many say they can sense the person’s true motives, and judge based on that. Sakusa Kiyoomi, the wizard of pure intentions!”

\------------------------------

Kiyoomi was elated at winning his first challenge. Not only did this mean he wouldn’t have to suffer through the next one, but it also meant he could finally  _ rest _ . He swore that the last time he slept for more than four hours was two, maybe three days ago? And he was probably hallucinating now because he saw Atsumu sitting in the Hufflepuff common room with a...golden egg? And he was stroking it? And shaking it this way and that? What the fuck?

Kiyoomi must’ve said the last part out loud, because Atsumu immediately perked up like a dog who was welcoming his owner home after a long day. 

“Omi-kun! I was waitin’ for ya!” Atsumu shoved the egg in his face. “Look at this. What the fuck is it?”

“I was literally just asking myself the same question. Where did you even get this thing?”

“Nekomata-sensei gave it to all the other challengers after ya won the magical creatures one,” Atsumu said. “Congratulations on that, by the way. I’m still winnin’ the tourney, though.”   
  
“If you have to tell yourself that to sleep easier at night, sure.”   
  


“Fuck ya.”

“Get on with what you were saying because I have to get to sleeping.”

“A’ight, a’ight, Mr. Impatient,” Atsumu snarked, handing Kiyoomi the egg again. “I’ve tried everythin’, but I have no clue how this can be a clue for the next challenge.”

Kiyoomi smoothed his hands over the surface of the egg, stopping when he felt something hard. “And why should I help you?”

“Omiii,” Atsumu whined. “Look, we’re competin’ against each other, sure. But you can’t tell me that ya don’t want ta compete with me, and only me, fer the Triwizard Cup final round. It’s always been ya and me, right?”

Kiyoomi’s heart thumped traitorously at the question, but he kept a stoic face when he replied, “Sure, I guess.”

Atsumu gestured to the egg again. Kiyoomi fiddled with what seemed like a clasp on the top of the egg. He wondered why Atsumu hadn’t tried unbuckling it yet. “Atsumu, there’s literally a clasp on top of this egg, why haven’t you tried opening it y-”

“Wait, Omi,  _ Omi don’t open that - _ ”

Atsumu’s exclamation came a second too late. Kiyoomi’s finger slipped on the egg’s lock, causing it to open. As soon as it did, the loudest, pitchiest, and worst shriek Kiyoomi had ever heard erupted from the egg’s open space. Vaguely, he remembered hearing the sound from somewhere, but the pain in his ears was making it hard for him to think at the moment. Atsumu was on the ground, hands over his ears, screaming something at Kiyoomi - probably telling him to close it. The surprise from the playing of the sound had caused him to drop the open egg on the floor, so he quickly scooped it up and closed it, securing the latch quickly. The sound cut off, the room silent once more.

“Ugh, Omi,” Atsumu groaned, a hand massaging his forehead as he stood up. “I told ya I tried everythin’ already. Ya really think I’m stupid enough to miss that entire lock thing?”

“I mean….”

“Omi, yer so mean.”

“Anyways,” Kiyoomi cut in, turning the egg over in his hand. “I kind of recognized that sound. Come with me to the library, quickly.”

“Omi, if you wanted me ta go with you alone somewhere, all ya had ta do was -”

“Do not finish that sentence unless you want me to jinx you.” 

Thankfully, Atsumu kept his mouth shut until they made it to the library. Nice to know that he took Kiyoomi’s threats seriously. As soon as they got there, Kiyoomi made a beeline for the section on lake creatures, pulling out a thick volume covered in dust. Out of habit, he blew the dust off, and only realized where it had gone when he looked up to see Atsumu’s face coated in grey particles.  _ Oops _ .

Ignoring the spluttering and sneezing coming from behind him, Kiyoomi grabbed a seat at a table and opened the book to the section about the merpeople that lived in the lake. 

“Atsumu, look at this,” he pointed to a line in the book. “‘The voices of merpeople are comparable to a siren’s song, one of the most beautiful melodies known to wizardkind. However, this is only true if those merpeople are submerged underwater, in their home. Out of the water, the lovely melodies turn into the most horrid screeches, used as a defense mechanism against those that seek to take them out of the water to dehydrate them.”

“So, all I gotta do is listen ta the egg underwater? Alright!” Atsumu grinned. He crouched down next to the chair that Kiyoomi was sitting in. When did he get so close? “Yer real smart, ya know that, Omi? Always have been. Yer face isn’t the only pretty thing about ya.”

“Fuck off, Atsumu,” Kiyoomi turned away to hide his blush. “You got your answer, now I get my nap. Shoo.”

“A’ight, a’ight, Omi-omi, I’m goin’,” Atsumu stood up to leave, but turned back one more time. “I got a tournament ta win, right?”

“We’ll see about that.”   
  
With one last flash of a grin, Atsumu sauntered out of the library. Kiyoomi packed up his stuff to leave as well, when Yachi flew into the room and right in his direction.

“Sakusa! Oh, thank god I caught you. Congratulations on the win, by the way!” Sakusa thanked her quickly. “What was I here for again….studying? Books? Oh, no it was for you! Yes, Headmaster Nekomata wanted to see you!”

“Thanks, Yachi, I’ll get going right now.”

Kiyoomi quickly gathered his things and left the library, heading towards Nekomata’s office. He suspected that since he didn’t have to participate in the next challenge, which was set to happen the next day, Nekomata would give him a few extra duties to carry out or even help set up the decorations surrounding the set of the next challenge. Kiyoomi still didn’t know what it was, but judging from Atsumu’s clue, it must be involved with water. When he reached the door of Nekomata’s office, he knocked twice and walked in upon hearing the headmaster acknowledge his request for entry.

“Kiyoomi-kun, hello!” Nekomata greeted cheerfully. “Congratulations on your win the other day!”

“Thank you, sensei,” Kiyoomi replied, sitting down on one of the armchairs in the office. “How are you? You must’ve been very busy these past few days, with the tournament and all. ”

“I have, I have, but no busier than usual!” Nekomata leaned forward, placing his chin on his hands. “But I actually called you here to ask about  _ your _ health. How’ve you been?”

Had Kiyoomi been displaying his stress for everyone to see? He didn’t want anyone to worry about him - it wasn’t necessary. Maybe he should invest in an anti-fatigue charm again. “Sensei, I’m fine. Like you said, I’m no busier than usual. Thank you for your concern, though.”

“Hmmm,” Nekomata didn’t seem convinced, but he leaned back all the same. “Alright, alright. But you better take care of yourself. Now, how is that tour group of yours going? I see that Miya Atsumu fellow seems to have taken a liking to you yet again.”

Merlin’s beard, the man was observant. While Kiyoomi was pondering upon how to answer Nekomata, the headmaster conjured a cup of tea and pushed it towards Kiyoomi. He uttered a soft thanks, and replied, “He’s annoying. But he’s a good wizard, and so are the rest of them. Many of the people in my tour group are Triwizard Challengers, and they will be hard to beat.”

“Well, I’m sure that you’ll do fine in the final challenge,” Nekomata assured. “How’s the tea? It’s one of my favorites!”

“Ummm,” Kiyoomi didn’t really know what to say. Upon first sipping the tea, it had tasted strange, and smelled quite pungent. He didn’t want to insult the headmaster, but he also wasn’t one to lie, so he replied truthfully, “It tastes kind of weird, sensei.”   
  
“Well, I sure hope so!”

What.

That was the last thing Kiyoomi thought, and heard, before he blacked out for the second time in his life in Headmaster’s Nekomata’s office. 

\------------------------------

Kiyoomi woke up to near darkness. His mind wasn’t fully cooperating with him yet, probably due to whatever knocked him out in the first place, but he faintly registered what felt like fronds of seaweed touching his bare foot and his robes being soaked with water. Which was strange, since he could breathe.

He turned his head to the side and started abruptly at what he saw. Oikawa was directly next to him, a Bubble-Head charm surrounding his head to allow him to breathe underwater. His eyes were still closed. When Kiyoomi looked to the other side, he saw Tendou in a similar position. Looking down, he noticed that each of their two feet were tied to the base of the body of water they were in with some type of sturdy rope. There was one question that remained in his head throughout his observations: why was he the only one awake?

Before he could form an answer, he heard a hiss behind him, followed by a cold touch on his neck. He stayed completely still, allowing the merperson to swim slowly in front of him, its webbed hand staying on the back of his neck. When it came face-to-face with him, it tilted its head and gave him a considering look.

“ _ You’re not supposed to be awake yet, child,”  _ the merperson hissed. “ _ The competitors have only just started the game. _ ”

Kiyoomi tried to reply, but the Bubble-Head Charm garbled his words and made them incomprehensible to the merperson. He just shook his head, a sign that he didn’t know what was going on either. The merperson had talked about a game, and competitors….did that mean that this was part of the Triwizard Tournament’s second challenge? It would make sense - the egg did contain the voice of a merperson, and Kiyoomi had already suspected that it would have to do with water. But what was the purpose? Why were the other students, including him, tied up like this?

Right as he was about to think about an answer to his own question, what looked like a horribly disfigured shark darted out from the murky depths of the water and headed straight for Kiyoomi. He would scream if he could, but the charm was blocking his vocal cords somehow, so he settled for trying to swim as far away as he could with the ropes still tying his ankles. Curiously enough, when the shark saw Kiyoomi move, it stopped abruptly, and then swam with a more considerate pace towards him. Then, it did the last thing Kiyoomi expected it to do - it opened its mouth.

“ _ Omi _ ,” it growled. “ _ It’s Atsumu _ .”

Atsumu? Oh my god, did he try to Transfigure himself into a shark? It would make sense, since the body of the shark seemed to be a gruesome mix between human legs and a shark tail, and the shark’s fins seemed to look more like human arms. 

“ _ Why the fuck are ya awake? _ ” it grumbled. Kiyoomi shook his head, signaling that he didn’t know the answer either. The shark - no, Atsumu - just grumbled again and ducked low to cut the rope with his teeth. It seemed like the physical usage of a shark limb lessened Atsumu’s Transfigured appearance, because it seemed like as soon as he sliced through the ropes his shark head disappeared, leaving only webbed feet and gills on his skin. But that wasn’t the only thing that disappeared when the ropes were cut - the Bubble-Head Charm surrounding Kiyoomi’s head broke as well, causing him to gulp in water instead of air.

Atsumu must’ve noticed Kiyoomi’s desperate flailing, since his head snapped up as soon as the charm disappeared. He swam quickly from the cut ropes to Kiyoomi, and tried to hold his arms down so that they wouldn’t smack him in the face.

“Omi, OMI!” Atsumu yelled. “Stay still, I got this, yer gonna be fine!”

Atsumu drew his wand out, but was immediately confronted by a merperson who tried to grab it.

“ _ You best remember, Challenger, that you are only to use the magic that you entered this game with. The rules are to be adhered. You are to save your treasure, and bring them to the surface. That is all.” _

Kiyoomi vaguely registered the word “treasure”, but his thought was cut off by his dwindling air supply and Atsumu’s yelling. “I don’t give half a fuck about the damn rules! My treasure is fuckin’ dyin’, and ‘m gonna save him!”

Atsumu immediately muttered a rudimentary Bubble-Head Charm, allowing Kiyoomi to gulp in some air and reduce the black spots that were starting to dot his vision. The merpeople hissed, and immediately surged in to attack them. 

Jumping into action, Atsumu wrapped an arm (almost possessively, Kiyoomi noted) around Kiyoomi’s waist, using his webbed feet to propel them away from the merpeople and towards the surface. He swore he saw Iwaizumi and Ushijima swimming towards Oikawa and Tendou as they escaped, but he couldn’t be so sure of the accuracy of his vision due to the lack of air in his lungs. When Kiyoomi had noted that the Bubble-Head Charm Atsumu had cast was rudimentary, he meant it - water was beginning to leak in again. 

“Atsumu…” Kiyoomi tried to say.

“Omi, yer okay,” Atsumu gritted his teeth and swam faster. “We’re gonna be okay.”

Atsumu swam at record speed, breaking the surface of the water just as the merpeople were about to catch up to them and drag them back down. They returned to fanfare and cheering, along with the sound of a cannon - the signal of a winning Challenger. Atsumu had won the second challenge.

Kiyoomi was still woozy due to the oxygen deprivation, but he could tell when Atsumu exited the water, placing him gently on the ground. Medics surrounded him as he sat up, but before he could speak a word, Atsumu started yelling. 

“Are ya  _ crazy _ ?” Kiyoomi craned his neck to look at the other boy and  _ oh _ , he looked absolutely livid. “Which one of ya fuckers were in charge of the Bubble-Head Charms, huh? ‘Cause obviously ya did a piss-poor job of it!”

Some people were trying to calm Atsumu down, but each one who tried to touch him received a glare full of hatred and anger. Others didn’t even try touching him, probably too scared of what would happen if they tried to restrain someone from the Miya bloodline. From the corner of his eye, Kiyoomi could spot Osamu rapidly descending the stairs from the viewer stands, probably to try and calm down his brother.

“It was us,” a man drawled. Kiyoomi looked in the person’s direction, and saw that he was wearing Ministry colors. Probably an entry-level officer, judging by the style of his uniform. “What seems to have been the problem,  _ sir _ ?” Kiyoomi flinched at his sardonic tone.

“Are ya seriously askin’ me….what ‘seems to have been the problem’?” Atsumu’s tone had dropped to a low, rumbling pitch full of repressed fury.

“I don’t know if the water clogged your brain, but that’s exactly what I just asked you.”

Atsumu was shaking now. In anger, Kiyoomi was positive. He wanted to reach out and calm him down, but his arms felt too heavy for him to move. 

“Yer damn charms got fucked up! And only on one person, it seems!” Atsumu gestured wildly to Kiyoomi. “He was fuckin’ drownin’ when I saved him! He was the only one doin’ so!”

“C’mon, it wasn’t that big of a deal. He could’ve probably swam up anyways at one point, or done something else. He’s a damn wizard! But I guess you can’t expect much from Mudbloods, can you?” The man let out a hearty laugh. Kiyoomi winced.

Kiyoomi knew that today’s world wasn’t much different from the world three years ago. Just because the people at Hogwarts knew of his magical prowess and were too scared to discriminate against him didn’t mean that those outside of Hogwarts would give him the same courtesy. The Ministry, in fact, was still mostly anti-Muggle-born, but Kiyoomi didn’t come into contact enough with the Ministry to worry about that. Except now, of course. In addition to the prick of shame at what the Ministry Officer had just said, embarrassment was starting to pool in his cheeks as well - the officer was right, Kiyoomi was a wizard. And yet, Atsumu had had to save him again, like a damsel in distress. Like a weakling. 

“Yer a fuckin’ dumbass.”

Kiyoomi swiveled his head around. Atsumu’s hand was clenched around his wand now, knuckles gone completely white. The Ministry Officer narrowed his eyes, and straightened his posture, almost as if getting ready for a fight. “You wanna say that again to me, boy?”

“I said, yer a dumbass. Mudblood? What kinda wizard even uses that slur anymore? Are ya stuck in the 1900s or somethin’? And also, why the fuck are ya even talkin’ about Kiyoomi like that? He’s ten times the wizard yer ever gonna be!”

Kiyoomi’s cloudy mind battled between whether to feel grateful for Atsumu’s defense or whether to feel indignant, to say that he didn’t need a knight in shining armor.    
  


“Obviously, he isn’t, if the  _ Mudblood _ needs a pureblood to save his ass. And you’re from the Miya line as well, aren’t you? You’re one of the purest purebloods there are! Why do you even care about him?”

Atsumu gritted his teeth. He had to have known he was drawing immense attention at this point, but it seemed like he didn’t care. “Miya this, Miya that. Pureblood this, Muggle-born that. Who the fuck gives a  _ shit _ about blood status? Yer worth is determined by yer skill and yer character, and if ya think otherwise, ya shouldn’t be a damn wizard in the first place!”

“Why, you -”

“ _ Expelliarmus! _ ”

Atsumu and Kiyoomi both watched as Headmaster Nekomata disarmed the Ministry Officer, who was preparing to raise his wand at Atsumu. As soon as the wand was flung out of the officer’s hand, two other wizards surrounded him and restrained him, using ropes that flew out of the tips of their wands. Atsumu rushed over to Kiyoomi, who was now flitting in and out of consciousness due to the drugs the medics had given him.

“There, there,” Atsumu soothed. “I gotcha, just rest.”

As Kiyoomi finally let himself be taken by darkness, he felt a cold kiss being pressed onto his forehead.

\------------------------------

Kiyoomi woke up fitfully, to the bright white light of the hospital wing. Nurse Isao, most likely disturbed by the noise, came by his bed with a clipboard in hand.

“Hi, darling,” she said. “Do you remember why you’re here?”

Kiyoomi nodded. Oxygen deprivation, a hit to the head when he and Atsumu were escaping. Wait - where was Atsumu? Kiyoomi seethed. So he was going to basically declare to the whole Tournament that he needed to save Kiyoomi and then just leave him in a hospital bed? No fucking way.

“Alright, good. The injuries weren’t too severe and there weren’t any long-lasting consequences, so you should be out of here soon. Just rest for about an hour and we’ll let you go.”

As soon as he was deemed well enough to move around, Kiyoomi threw off the covers of his hospital bed and stormed out of the wing. Atsumu was leaning against the wall, biting at his fingernails. Was he nervous? Worried? Kiyoomi didn’t really care at the moment. He was running on the adrenaline of embarrassment and shame. He was about to open his mouth when Atsumu noticed his presence and grabbed his shoulder, effectively Apparating them away from the hospital wing. When they landed, they seemed to be in a dark, cavernous room with walls built out of grey stones and a black brick floor.

Kiyoomi was even more pissed off now. “There you go again, doing whatever you want without permission. Why do you always have to act like a hero?” Kiyoomi seethed, throwing Atsumu’s arm off of him. “That was embarrassing! As if people didn’t already know I was a Muggle-born, now they think I need a pureblood saving my ass too!”

“Ya were right there! Ya heard what I said, I don’t give a fuck about blood status!” Atsumu retorted. “Ya were drownin’, what was I supposed ta do, let ya? And let that awful officer talk shit about ya, too?”

“I could’ve gotten out of it! I can swim!” It was true, but Kiyoomi knew that he had been too deep in the lake to have swam successfully all the way to the surface. A small part of him recognized that he was being unreasonable, that his mind was just clouded by the mortification and anger of needing to be saved  _ again _ . It brought him back to another time, where he felt just as helpless. “I’m not a damsel in distress! And I’ve been telling you that since the incident in third year, that I don’t need -”

“Kiyoomi,” Atsumu looked at him, as earnest as ever. “Do ya even know the guilt I felt when I left ya that day, in third year? When I came back and saw ya all broken and bloody on the floor?”

“I get it, Atsumu,” Kiyoomi said spitefully. “You felt bad for me back then too, I know. You pitied me, just like you did today.”

“Obviously ya  _ don’t _ get it if ya think that was my point here.”

The heaviness, the bitterness, the  _ sadness _ in Atsumu’s tone forced Kiyoomi’s head to snap up and focus on the other boy. A tear tracked down his cheek, the sound of it hitting the stone floor thunderous in the quiet room. Kiyoomi’s mouth gaped, an unanswered question yearning to escape from the tip of his tongue. But when Atsumu pinned him with his gaze once again, glistening eyes meeting wide ones, Kiyoomi swallowed down his curiosities.

“So, what is your point?”

Atsumu smiled ruefully and held out a hand, offering guidance and support to wherever they were about to go, and whatever they were about to see. 

He took Atsumu’s hand.

Atsumu clutched onto Kiyoomi as if he were the only light in endless shadow, and dragged him behind one of the walls of the room. Kiyoomi couldn’t see anything due to the darkness, which Atsumu remedied by whispering a soft  _ Lumos _ that echoed throughout the space. When his wand began glowing a soft yellow, Kiyoomi was able to discern some of the distinguishing features of the space. It seemed like it had previously been some type of bedroom, with a chest on the far right, a desk near it, and….an antique mirror?

“Ah, it’s still here! Thank Merlin.” Atsumu placed a hand on his chest and blew out an exaggerated breath, walking to the mirror and dusting it off with his shirt sleeve. He turned back to Kiyoomi, and gestured vaguely to the mirror. “Do ya know what this is?”

“It’s a mirror, isn’t it?” Kiyoomi was confused. Was this a trick question?

“Yer right, but it’s not just any mirror,” Atsumu explained, stroking the mirror’s border. His hand eventually stopped its path, pointing to the top of the border. The words  _ Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi _ were engraved where Atsumu’s pointer finger rested.

“The Mirror of Erised,” Kiyoomi whispered in awe. “I’ve always thought this was an urban legend….how did you find it? How did you know it was here, at Hogwarts?”

“By lying ta ya.” 

Kiyoomi was still confused. Lying to him? When? What did that have to do with anything? Something on his face must’ve given away his inner turmoil, because Atsumu stepped away from the mirror to step closer to him and clasp both of Kiyoomi’s hands in his.

“Let me explain, Kiyoomi,” Atsumu murmured. “That day, when I told ya I was going to fill out some papers, I was lyin’ ta ya. Actually, everytime I told ya I was busy when ya went to the lake, I was lyin’ ta ya.”

“Atsumu, are you trying to make me not trust you? What the hell is going on?” Kiyoomi tried pulling his hands away, but Atsumu held firm.

“I was here that day. Nekomata-sensei had seen us together, probably knew what I felt about ya before even I knew. I guess this was his way of givin’ me a big push.”

Kiyoomi’s breaths were coming in quick, short pants now. Atsumu was still staring resolutely at their joined hands, as if looking at them would answer all the questions in the world.  The tension in the air was so thick that it could’ve been sliced through. What was this feeling?

“He gave me a map of sorts, I think it was called the Marauder’s Map. Sly old man, Nekomata-sensei is,” Atsumu’s lip quirked up, probably reminiscing fondly on the headmaster. “He told me that it would show me the path to the ‘deepest, most desperate desire of my heart’. And guess where the map led me? It led me here, Kiyoomi, ta the Mirror. Can ya guess what I saw?”

Kiyoomi licked his lips. Atsumu followed the motion. “What?”

Kiyoomi felt Atsumu’s thumb stroking his, but he kept his eyes fixed on the man in front of him. 

“I saw ya. Us, together, if ya wanna be specific.” Atsumu extracted one hand and placed it on Kiyoomi’s cheek, caressing it with the tenderness of a new lover. Kiyoomi leaned into it. “It was actually future-Omi ‘n Atsumu, so basically how we are right now. Ya were so beautiful, as always, I swear I couldn’t take my eyes off of ya. Ya looked so strong, so powerful, just like I always knew ya could be.”

“I thought you hated me,” Kiyoomi muttered. “I thought you were just flaunting all the girls that you got and everything to fuck with my head, make me jealous of you or something.”

Atsumu laughed heartily. “Of course I was tryna make ya jealous, but not of me! I was tryna make you jealous of those girls! I liked ya! Ya were this awesome guy who stood up ta his bullies and stayed in the place that put ya through hell ‘cause ya were, are, so damn ambitious! Yer really too good to be real.” Atsumu patted Kiyoomi’s cheek. “Kiyoomi, yer like one of my wildest dreams, and it’s so easy ta fall in love with a dream.”

_ You’re the dream _ , Kiyoomi wanted to say. “I’m not a dream, I’m right here,” he said instead.

“Yeah, yeah, and I’m real lucky for that, ain’t I?” Atsumu smiled and looked up and  _ oh fuck, Kiyoomi was so whipped _ . “I swear, I sat in front of that mirror for God knows how long, selfishly drinkin’ ya in when the real Omi was bein’ hurt in the real world. I’m sor-”

“Don’t apologize again,” Kiyoomi interrupted. “You were there in the end. I was the one that pushed you away. I thought you were just doing charity work because you felt sorry for the poor Muggle-born.” The last sentence had much more sarcasm than he intended it to have.

“When are ya gonna get it into that thick, pretty head of yers?” Atsumu enunciated each word with a poke to Kiyoomi’s forehead. “I’ve never felt sorry for ya! Everythin’ I’ve done for ya, each time I’ve saved yer ass or given ya somethin’ or anythin’, I did it out of love, not stupid pity! I love ya, Kiyoomi, I have since we were kids. So do ya understand now?”

Ah, that was the feeling - Kiyoomi could finally put a name to it now: love. He’d known that he’d liked Atsumu since third year, but the feeling had made Kiyoomi’s heart swell and swell until Atsumu’s confession had finally made it completely explode. Love, that’s what it was. Kiyoomi finally recognized it. How could he not, with the physical embodiment of everything he considered good, of everything he considered  _ love  _ (even without realizing it), right in front of him?

“Ya were so easy ta fall in love with,” Atsumu said warmly. “I was a goner from the first time ya told me ta fuck off.”

The joke pulled a small smile from Kiyoomi, but it faded when an unsavory thought entered his mind. “Just because I was easy to fall in love with doesn’t mean I’ll be easy to love, Atsumu. I’m difficult, and I give you hell most of the time….don’t you want to be with someone easier?”

Atsumu stared at him incredulously for what seemed like hours - the silence was starting to get uncomfortable. Then, he scoffed, and for a split second Kiyoomi’s heart plummeted until Atsumu said, “Yer ridiculous, overthinkin’ already when ya just got confessed to. I shoulda expected it, but oh well.” Kiyoomi was more than a bit relieved to hear that Atsumu’s tone was affectionate. “I wanna make a few things clear, Omi. I dunno what ya were taught, but ta me love is compromise, sacrifice, ‘n acceptin’ each other regardless of flaws. I’ve already known how yer personality is since 3 years ago, and look at me! I’m still here barin’ my heart to ya. Doesn’t that count for somethin’?”

Kiyoomi slowly nodded. Atsumu grinned. The air felt so much warmer, all of a sudden.

“So, there’s only one question left now, Omi-omi. Do ya love me back?”

And Kiyoomi knew, at that moment, that there was only one thing that he could possibly do. He grabbed Atsumu’s shirt collar and yanked him closer to Kiyoomi, only taking the time for one breath before slotting their lips together. It was a little sloppy, a little flawed, but to Kiyoomi it was perfect. Atsumu was whispering Kiyoomi’s name like a prayer in between kisses, and his hands gripped deliciously on Kiyoomi’s hips. It was exactly what he had dreamed about for the past 3 years, and he wouldn’t be letting go anytime soon.

Well, except when they had to break for a breath, but even then Kiyoomi only took a few seconds before diving right in again like a starving man.

Countless kisses and soft murmurs later, they broke apart, flushed and breathless. Atsumu grinned, and it was like Kiyoomi could feel the idiocy about to come out of his mouth. “God, Omi, ya were really suckin’ me in back there. I’ll take that as a yes, then?”

And for some unknown reason, call it adrenaline or affection or even love, Kiyoomi just rolled his eyes and responded, “Yes, Atsumu, it’s always been a yes with you. I love you.”

Kiyoomi swore he saw Atsumu wriggle like an excited worm before he surged forward and squished Kiyoomi’s face in between his hands, showering little kisses all over Kiyoomi’s face while Kiyoomi giggled loudly. He really was in love, wasn’t he?

Eventually, Atsumu stepped back and gazed reverently at Kiyoomi, eyes soft and tracking all over the other boy’s face. “Hey, there’s one last thing I wanted ta ask ya. Indulge me?”

“Always, Atsumu.”   
  
“I wanna know what ya see in the Mirror of Erised.” Atsumu stepped away from Kiyoomi, grabbing his wand and pointing it at the Mirror, muttering a quick spell under his breath before turning back. “I wanted ta confess ‘n everythin’ before ya looked, so I put a quick Concealment Charm on it before I brought ya here. I just removed it, so why don’t ya take a peek?”

Kiyoomi already had a guess of what he would see, but he obliged nevertheless. Yes, he had wanted his own power ever since he was a kid, but he had that already. There was only one other thing that Kiyoomi’s ever wanted badly in his life, and he’d already gotten it. What could the Mirror possibly show him?

At first, the mirror was blank of any magical interference when Kiyoomi looked into it. All he saw was his own reflection, and that of Atsumu waiting patiently in the background. Then, the image warped, a misty substance swirling on its surface. When the fog settled, mirror-Kiyoomi was sitting down on what seemed to be a grassy surface, looking straight at real-Kiyoomi. A hand was curled almost possessively around a bundle of something red and furry with a blond tuft of hair….Sunny?

That didn’t make sense - Kiyoomi had been visiting Sunny regularly since he had returned. Kiyoomi had desired for Sunny to come back, and he did - the issue was resolved. Just as his confusion reached a peak, mirror-Sunny jumped out of mirror-Kiyoomi’s grasp and circled around the meadow before glowing a steady orange. Kiyoomi also felt Atsumu’s hand land suddenly on his shoulder and a faint “okay please don’t be mad at me Omi-Omi” being whispered before he saw the most surprising thing in his life, which was saying a lot.

The glowing surrounding Sunny slowly diminished, revealing that the fox had disappeared. Instead, Miya Atsumu stood in his place. Kiyoomi watched, frozen, as mirror-Atsumu walked back to mirror-Kiyoomi and smothered him in a hug, toppling them backwards as they both laughed endlessly. As the reflection began clouding over again, Kiyoomi whipped around to the sight of a sheepish Atsumu, bracing his arms over his head as if preparing for impact. His words began flowing back into Kiyoomi’s mind:  _ Actually, everytime I told ya I was busy when ya went to the lake, I was lyin’ ta ya. _

“BEFORE YA CURSE ME,” Atsumu yelled, still hiding under his arms. “I CAN EXPLAIN!”

“Atsumu, quiet the fuck down, why are you yelling?”   
  
“I GET LOUD WHEN ’M SCARED! IT’S A DEFENSE MECHANISM.”

“Well, shut the fuck up, because I’m already annoyed and that isn’t helping.” Kiyoomi stepped over and pulled Atsumu’s arms (firm, firm arms) away from his face. “You said you’d explain. I’m listening.”

Atsumu rubbed the back of his neck meekly, explaining, “Well, ya probably already assumed that ‘m an Animagus. A fox Animagus. And that ‘m also, um, the same one that’s been visitin’ ya since we were kids. Sunny. Cute name by the way, Omi. It’s ‘cause of my birthmark, right?”

Atsumu stuck out his hand, on which there was a brown birthmark shaped vaguely like a sun. It was located exactly where the mark on Sunny’s paw was. Before Kiyoomi could answer, he yanked his hand back and continued. “Look, ‘m sorry I lied, I didn’t know the Mirror would show ya that. But I shouldn’t be surprised, it was probably showin’ ya ‘the truth’, which was what was probably yer deepest desire, even if ya didn’t know it.”

Kiyoomi sighed. He would never rest with this one. “Atsumu -”

“I wasn’t takin’ advantage of ya, though!” Atsumu interrupted. “I heard some of yer complaints, about me and life, but I never let that affect my opinion of ya and I never told anyone else. I just wanted ta get ta know ya better, since that was before we got paired up. I understand if ya don’t love me anymore, but I swear, that was one out of the only two lies I’ve ever told ya, Omi, I promise!”

“Atsumu, I believe you,” Kiyoomi patted the side of Atsumu’s face, making the hopeful light in the blond’s eyes shine a bit brighter. “I still love you. It’s going to take a lot for me not to. I understand, I wasn’t the easiest person to talk to back then, and we were kids. Our judgment was bound to be skewed. I know now, so it’s fine, I forgive you.”

Atsumu broke into a bright grin. He opened his mouth to speak, but Kiyoomi interrupted him, placing one slender finger on his lips. “Just because I forgive you doesn’t mean I’m going to forget it so quickly, Atsumu,” Kiyoomi smirked. “I’ll just pay you back in the next Triwizard challenge. Get ready to get your ass kicked in the Maze.”

Atsumu cocked an eyebrow, pressing a chaste kiss to Kiyoomi’s fingertip before pulling it away from his mouth and returning the smirk. “Nah, babe. The only ass getting kicked is gonna be yers. This tournament is mine.”

“We’ll see about that, love.”

\------------------------------

In a century-wide upset, Kiyoomi was able to snatch the Triwizard Cup at the end of the last challenge to constitute the first Muggle-born Triwizard Champion in the history of the Tournament. It wasn’t an easy win - true to his word, Atsumu had flung spell after spell at Kiyoomi, tripping him up with tree roots come alive and Patronuses that clouded his vision and sense of direction. But it didn’t matter, because at the end of the Maze, Kiyoomi had sprinted with all he had to win the neck-and-neck race between him and his boyfriend, hauling the Cup with him as he exited the maze. Atsumu hadn’t even looked a tad bit disappointed - he had just asked Kiyoomi to set the cup down before picking him up and planting a big kiss right on his lips, in front of all the spectators and other Challengers. 

“Y’all, my boyfriend is the Triwizard Champion! Beat that!” he had shouted. Kiyoomi had just rolled his eyes at Atsumu’s goofy antics, and then shot Motoya a glare when he screamed his approval back, Suna at his side.

Now, the only challenge left to tackle was the Yule Ball. 

“I think you should go with the blue robes,” Oikawa said, lazily draped across Kiyoomi’s bed. “They go well with your complexion.”

“But what about the red robes??” Tendou waved animatedly to the robes in question. “Black hair, black eyes, red robes - you’re telling me that doesn’t look hot as hell, Kawa-kun?”

“I think they both look pretty, Sakusa! You look good in anything!” Yachi said pleasantly.

“Ah, Hitoka-chan, always the compromiser,” Oikawa ruffled her hair, causing her to squeak indignantly. “But she’s right, you look good in anything. Now hurry your ass up, because if you don’t I’m going to be late meeting Iwa-chan for the Ball!”

“Same with me and Wakatoshi-kun!” Tendou exclaimed. “Yachi-kun, do you have a date?”

Yachi tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, blushing a bit when she said, “There was this girl from Durmstrang that I talked to a lot while helping out with the tournament...her name’s Kanoka Amanai. She asked me out to the Ball a few days ago!”

Kiyoomi smiled at his friends in the mirror. “I’m glad you all found someone. Ushijima-san and Iwaizumi-san are very good people, from what I know as their former tour guide.”

“Yeah, yeah, Iwa-chan’s sweet as sugar and hot as hell, we know,” Oikawa jumped off of the bed. “Now, let’s get going, Triwizard Champion! You might’ve won the Tournament but that doesn’t mean you can be late to the Yule Ball!”

Kiyoomi pouted, but still made quick work of his robes, the red ones (no, he most definitely did not choose that color so that he could match Atsumu’s formal wear), and followed his friends to the Great Hall. He descended the steps to the Hall quickly before nearly colliding with a broad chest covered in red cloth and a leather buckle. 

“Wow,” Atsumu breathed out, standing at the foot of the stairs. “Yer gorgeous, Kiyoomi.”

Kiyoomi blushed, but he wanted to disagree. Atsumu was the gorgeous one, standing there under the light like a dream come true, hand offered to Kiyoomi. His red vest contrasted perfectly with the fur coat draped across one of his shoulders, and his pants perfectly fitted to those glorious thighs. His hair had been parted to the side, and he had lightened it so that the blond color resembled finely-spun golden thread rather than a banana.

“You do, too,” Kiyoomi mumbled, taking his hand. Atsumu seemed a bit disappointed at the lack of enthusiasm, so Kiyoomi swooped in to give him a quick peck on the cheek. Atsumu immediately lost his pout, grinning brightly. 

“Omi-kun,” he pointed to the ceiling. “Look. Mistletoe. Ya know what that means, right?”

Kiyoomi looked up. Mistletoe had been growing around the school in random places in preparation for the Yule Ball, and now was no exception. A large bush of it was attached to the arch at the bottom of the stairs, growing steadily bigger by the second. Kiyoomi looked back at Atsumu, who was smiling softly now. Kiyoomi’s heart burst just looking at him, as if opening the floodgates of a lake full of adoration. Looking at the man who had been with him for so much of his life, through so many obstacles, and who had stood by him no matter what had happened.

“Yeah, I do,” Kiyoomi whispered, leaning in. “Merry Yule, love.”

And when their lips met again, fingers intertwined, Kiyoomi only had one thought playing in his mind.

_ I was wrong. Not everyone leaves - the best people stay. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow, it's been a long one. thank you all for reading and sticking with me through my first fic on AO3! i'll be writing more, but for now I hope you enjoyed this one. and as always, you can find me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/hellfire1515) . thank you again!

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading this far! feel free to talk hq with me, leave any other comments or critiques, or just interact with me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/hellfire1515) !! again thank you so much and i'd love to hear your thoughts!


End file.
